Cohort
by Sulkon088
Summary: Alliance Marine, James Fields is promoted into a new Council Defense Force. There he and some of the best in the galaxy will be pitted against some of the greatest enemies to citadel space. Chapter 36 is up. Comments and Critiques always welcome.
1. The Marine

**Foreward and Disclaimer. **I do not own by any means the characters places and events created by Bioware's Mass Effect. This is a fanfiction meant to show writing skill and also to allow a creative outreach for a game that I really have gotten into. Please enjoy.

Note all source material was mainly found from the actual game with a great codex of information and knowledge. Don't own those either.

"What I'm saying admiral is that my men are some of the best damn fighters in the galaxy and we stand united here. No one individual is to blame for what happened because we win or fail as a unit. The unit chose to act, no one man is going down because of your incompetence."

Volus General Itrad Hetui

Leader of former JTOP regiment code-named 'Cohort'.

Service Chief Jameson Fields hated space travel. Many opted to simply go into stasis pods for long voyages across the stars but Jameson had never successfully endured a cold sleep. Something about going into a near death state just rubbed his mind the wrong way and so he routinely slept the old fashioned way on a bunk. Of course being ready and able had its advantages especially now. A harsh beeping had woke James and he eagerly sought the source to turn it off.

The small space did not bode well with the marine's frame but he had learned to adapt and easily swung out of his sleeping area onto the cold metallic deck. He cursed himself for not thinking to put on socks before he moved but now the beeping was getting annoying and he moved quickly to locate the source. Life aboard the _Osiris_ had slowed to a crawl lately. The small frigate had a crew of eight and routinely patrolled multiple Alliance worlds to scout the increased pirate activity throughout humanities territory. The ship was nimble and fast but had no teeth whatsoever, exactly what Jameson had hoped to avoid after being assigned to the 8th Fleet.

'2 years in the alliance and you already got yourself blacklisted, smooth Fields.' His superior officer had told him before assigning him to his newest crap detail. Its not that what the _Osiris _did wasn't dangerous, it was that when the danger came Jameson wouldn't be able to do squat besides sit their like a good robot and watch to see if some fresh out of the academy pilot could cut it against some hardened pirate. James pushed the thoughts away when he managed to find the thing causing him so much trouble. The standard alliance shipboard com unit's song finaly ceased as the marine accessed the console. 'Now what?' he entered in his access code and located what had started the alert.

The text flowing across the screen sank whatever hope James had of falling back into his slumber. "Priority Alpha Alert. Alliance destroyer _Tranquil_ broadcasting on emergency band from the Farinata System. Life support down, engines crippled, hull integrity failing. Unknown enemy signatures dropped in right on top of us, need assistance." James quickly viewed the message once more scanning every word making sure he wasn't wrong. The transmission was seven hours old and had no follow up whatsoever. He immediately turned off the stasis locks and began thawing out the other crewmates. He started a diagnostic before finding their exact location while he prepared to drop the _Osiris_ out of FTL speeds. Soon enough he found the _Osiris'_ position, just entering the Hades Gamma Cluster. James immediately queued the distress call for when they entered the range of the nearest com buoy and then checked on the status of his shipmates.

All green across the board with some slightly heightened pulses typical of a quick thaw. Routing the chamber camera to monitor three he checked to make sure there wasn't anything externally wrong. His eyes lingered over one of the pods and then quickly set back to work. A distress call wasn't uncommon for the _Osiris_ but most would always be from colonies along the frontier, never an alliance battleship that kind of thing just didn't happen regularly. He prayed that another larger ship had happened across the _Tranquil_ earlier and assisted but he knew deep down such thoughts were fruitless. For a system alliance destroyer to have to send out a distress call the situation would have to be pretty grim given that most were in small garrisons of at least four to five combat vessels. No, the _Tranquil_ had run into trouble and James prepared himself for the worst as he began plotting the course to the nearest jump point that would bring the ship right to the Farinata System.


	2. Call in the Darkness

1st Class Servicewomen Nina Collins swung her legs out of the stasis pod. Rubbing her eyes slightly the tall mechanic yawned slightly a compulsion she didn't quite understand given that she should have been sleeping in that pod for a few days. As she grabbed her fatigues she looked over back to the other pods. Most of the other hatches were slowly creaking open and then she noticed that Lieutenant Commander Aseldone's was among them.

It was standard operation procedure that the CO of any military vessel, wake up a few hours early to make sure the rest of the thawing process went smoothly. But if the Commander was just being thawed out himself, than who unsealed the hatches.

"What in the hell is that crazy marine pulling?" Servicemen Walton shouted as he himself donned the standard enlisted soldier uniform. Nina ignored the remark and tried to think over the possibilities for thawing before schedule. Surely the marine had a good reason but if they didn't maintain their exact route than their patrol would be altered and possibly even cause a gap in an already thin security line. Of course she'd find no answers down here. Finished well before even the last crewmember awoke Nina headed up for the access stairway that would take her directly to the command center and hopefully some answers.

The service chief had always been a sort of enigma to the _Osiris_ crew. The marine had been dropped on them so to speak on their last landing with Arcturus but no one save possibly the commander knew why he had been assigned to them. Scuttlebutt abound as it always was the rumors ranged from a military experiment gone wrong which facilitated the lack of going into cold sleep, all the way to him being a complete lune and the marines didn't have anywhere else to put him except a scouting and reconnaissance ship. But he seemed normal enough to Nina minus the fact that he had managed to already complete a series of task usually spread out through at least four individuals.

Out the small rectangular viewport a group of planets stared back at her calm visage. The main monitor displayed their location as being in the Farinata system in the Hades Gamma cluster, part of their regular patrol route but just a little past their usual exit vector to the next mass relay. She sat down at her main console and logged in she turned to the chief.

"Bit of an extravagant way to get some company isn't it chief?" She asked going through a system check to make sure nothing aboard had caused the thaw. But all systems responded back within normal parameters and so she brought up the ships telemetry screen. Before she got so far a small beep issued from her console and a new message crossed her screen. The blood almost drained from her face when she saw the report. The _Osiris_ had seen its share of burnt down and raided colonies but this put all those out of the scope. An alliance battle group in critical condition operating in the very system they had just entered. 'What was that jarhead thinking?' She thought as she loaded the basic heat monitoring program to make sure she did her part no matter what the circumstances. Somewhere behind her she finaly got a reply.

"It's our job to monitor Alliance territory and make sure that high command is informed about any threats to security at all times no matter the cost. A destroyed battle group ranks pretty high on my chart Collins." The marine's tone wasn't harsh but it wasn't all that friendly either. Nina wondered just how tough he'd be when the commander arrived to find out why the taxpayers would have to pay a whole load of credits because one of the alliance scouting vessels had pulled off its patrol to go gala banding into most likely hostile territory.

Within a few seconds her thoughts came to realization as Aseldone arrived on the command deck. "Chief Fields I demand to know just what you think your doing." The grizzled commander had seen his far share of action while serving out in the Skyllian Verge and had found reconnaissance roles as a good way to continue service but not throw him right back into the fire. The marine slowly exited the main command chair and strengthened up. Like most marines Nina had seen you wouldn't want to be caught in a bar fight anywhere near him, but on your side you could feel that he would do his job without excuse.

"The com relay picked up a distress call from one of our battle groups operating in the cluster. The message doesn't paint a good picture for their ships commander, I took it upon myself to investigate." The commander and Walton slowly moved toward James though no one could see any angered intent on either of them. James knew how to handle himself but assaulting an alliance officer didn't really put you high on the redeemed list.

"This is my ship marine, not yours! I'm the only one who says where she goes and what she does, not some washed up Service Chief like you." Even Nina could feel the sting in his words but it hardly seemed to faze Fields.

"We have a duty to the alliance to make sure nothing passes our security. I'm just following orders." James retorted wishing he had thought enough to bring his pistol. No, he'd no more make sure he got the ship to the _Tranquil_ then solidify that he was unfit even for such a mundane task as serving on a scout vessel. But that thought didn't comfort him one bit when he saw Walton tighten the grip on his stun baton.

"Yes following orders is important and I'll trust you to continue that." Aseldone's reply was cold and commanding as he continued. "Servicemen Walton take the chief back to the lower decks find somewhere out of the way and restrain him, if he persists use…" his last line didn't finish as his eyes slowly registered something. Almost at once all the other crew members found the same alluring sight. Slowly turning around James stared out the main view port. They had found the _Tranquil_.


	3. Just a Peak

The sight of any ship lying dead in space was never something that was easy to get used to but this was different. The _Tranquil_ had served in multiple battlefronts across the traverse even surviving the engagement against the _Sovereign_. Now the once mighty vessel floated aimlessly near Nepneu surrounded by the floating metallic skeletons of several other alliance vessels. James had no love for ship to ship fighting and to see such a mighty vessel with multiple large exit wounds showing up on the initial scan of the ship's hull disheartened him more than a host of his previous battles.

All the crew stood at their stations now, working fast to ascertain the situation. Hundreds of questions would need answers when they brought their findings back to HIGHCOM, and the commander intended for them to be answered. James did his most to stay out their way, after all he was still just security detail and he didn't want to risk angering Aseldone any more than necessary at this point.

"Chief have a look at this." One of the sensor officers said before returning to his task. Making a note of where Aseldone was monitoring com traffic he crossed the deck to the sensor officer's desk. He remembered her from when he'd boarded the ship on Arcturus, Collins, smart, quick witted and one of the few glad to have some kind of weapon aboard the ship. Collins' face seemed to a combination of Hispanic and Germanic hereditary traits. Her form betrayed a lineage of hierarchy though, her gate reminded him of old holovids of royal ladies used to getting things done fast and not be hampered by what traditions she may be breaking just to get her way. But history only goes so far, what a person did in the present was all that mattered

As he approached Nina showed him a thermal can of the destroyer's mid section. At least ten silhouettes comprised of a range of bright coloration were seen moving around in what appeared to be a secondary command center. Survivors, elated immediately turned to Aseldone.

"Commander we have thermal signatures registering on the _Tranquil_ possibly survivors." He spoke keeping excitement out of his voice. The commander examined the evidence and then gazed at the ruined vessel.

"It's too risky Fields whatever destroyed the group could come back and I don't intend to let the _Osiris_ be target practice." He started issuing an order to prepare jump calculations before James acted.

He gruffly grabbed Aseldone by the shoulder and none too gently turned him back to the console. "Commander those are alliance personnel aboard and you're just going to leave them?" James asked noticing a number of other crewmembers turning to see the commander's response.

"It's not our place to…" He saw the determination in the marine's eyes. "Alright Chief you have half an hour than we boot it out of here and get back to Arcturus where I'll be happy to report you behavior to the academy." He said almost with a snarl. The commander ordered the ship inwards to dock with the nearest emergency hatch the crew could find before turning back to the marine.

"Take Collins and Walton with you I'll need as much info as we can get while you go play hero. Make it good Fields."

James sat in the small confines of the ships nonexistent armory. The small space was a simple niche on the lower deck that two equipment lockers and one weapons locker. He'd been surprised enough when he'd found that the containers actually had gear in them but it didn't matter to him. He'd dropped a large duffel bag in the space and took out his Devon Industries Explorer II armor suit. A gift on a mission gone even worse than this one could be he put on the black body suit and then expertly donned the now dull white colored plates.

As he finished clasping together the right gauntlet and making sure he had adequate mobility he noticed Collins emerge from the refresher adorned in the standard Onyx brand outfit. She'd made no objections to joining James on the excursion but other than that she'd hadn't made any comment supporting the operation. The black armor fit her well as she moved to the weapons locker and pulled open the case. Two Lancer Assault Rifles lay untouched in their holdings and Nina had to wrestle a bit with the container till she managed to obtain the weapon. Turning away James managed a small smile. He hadn't said anything to the two techs about bringing weapons aboard, if the situation called for them to actually use their weapons than they'd most likely already be dead but he wasn't about to share that with them.

He latched on his Scimitar III Shotgun and then made sure all components of his suit were in place. He'd opted for simply a shotgun and a pistol knowing they would work well with the tight corridors of the alliance vessel. Fields believed in over preparing even on something like securing survivors. Constant vigilance had been drilled into him all the way back to his marine training back at Fort Antwerp. When Walton joined them, trying his best to look confident with his inexperience with holding his own rifle they moved to the airlock.

"Alright Fields you have 30 units get cracking and make sure you get the data logs if you can. Aseldone out."


	4. Boarders from another Mother

The small team entered through emergency airlock the _Osiris_ had docked onto. James was first through with Collins and Walton close behind. The marine didn't like walking into the blind but this was different, wasn't it. He'd always handled things with utmost precision but he figured the faster they find the survivors the better. He brought up his helmet's RTS or real time sensor to locate the group and there they were roughly 3 compartments forward.

"Walton you and Collins get to a terminal see what you can find out I'm going to see to the survivors." He said gruffly not wanting to waste any time. As he started walking away he heard hurried footsteps behind him. "I'll come with you," he turned to see Collins catching up to him. "The survivors might have wounded, besides Walton can handle himself can't you."

"Hell wont be nothing but a walk in the park, you guys go play hero while I go after the important things." He replied as he headed down the left corridor. James and Nina set off making sure their suits were secure. Scans showed the nearest cabin had been breached during the fighting and James didn't feel like exposing his lungs to the vacuum of space. Entering the vacant corridor they saw the source of the breach, a large hole right in the walkway exactly in front of them.

Nina opened her Omni-Tool and quickly scanned the edges of the blast while James figured out their next action. He judged the gap was about a meter long at the shortest point an easy jump for him but this was the fist time Nina had worn any sort of armor and he remembered just how well his first zero g leap had been. He had to think of something fast they'd already wasted about seven minutes just to come to a stop at this point. Her voice via the helmet link broke up his thoughts.

"This thing isn't registering as any weapon the Alliance has seen in ship to ship battles chief. What do you think it is." Still deep in her work she didn't notice James moving slightly behind her.

"Maybe it's geth." He replied as she stood. "No the alliance got multiple examples from the citadel battle that its easy to discount it. Oh well, now how do you intend to get us across this gap?"

"Simple." James made sure he was quick he grabbed a hold of her arm and as gently as he could… tossed her across the gap. He quickly silenced his com unit as she let loose a scream and then jumped across after her. Nina landing was not exactly fashionable but her kinetic shields took the brunt of the crash. As she registered just what had happened she turned to see the marine land nicely next to her. She curled back a punch and almost connected but she was still getting used to the non gravity and the blow was slow and James easily grasped her hand.

"I know I deserve that but to find an alternate route would have taken us time we don't have." He saw her helmet move in response and then remembered the muted voice channel and quickly tuned her back in.

"…Kick your teeth in you crazy bastard." Resisting the urge to cut her off again he simply held his grip firm. "Sorry Collins it wont happen again." He said before releasing her and continuing forward. Nina was still a bit on edge before she resumed her own course as well. 'Maybe he really is crazy and I was stupid enough to go with him instead of Walton.' They entered the next compartment and James' pace increased slightly as they neared the survivors.

Walton opened his Omni Tool and made sure his vision recorder was active. It couldn't hurt to make sure that everything was top grade in his report, might even land him a commendation and a reassignment away from the _Osiris_. He accessed the security terminal and started going through the files trying to locate something about the battle. instead all he could find were patrol routes and armaments and a lot of other standard operating procedures nothing about an attack. According to the console the ship was running full crewed and completely operation, not some destroyed wreckage slowly making its course into the system's sun. Something wasn't right here it was if the information had been purged or erased. Switching tactics he located the surveillance network and found the proper monitor for the room that the survivors presided in. the image connection was faulty but the audio worked just fine with some tuning on Walton's part.

"The more time we spend here the bigger chance the alliance sends someone to find this mess." A quick panicky voice spoke.

"Shut up Phay and just do your job, your paid to work not talk." A low grumble of a voice answered.

"I'm not paid to die either Vulern, fine just make sure everything is secure. I'll get back to it. I can't believe the security on this mainframe is so encrypted, I should bring a sample back to the… wait do you hear that?"

"Yeah, hit the jammer we got company. I told you to watch the sensors Elik." The dark voice had a military edge to it.

"I have boss I swear nothing came up I've been watching…." Gunfire finished his reply and then the sound of a body hitting the floor answered it. "The rest of you get ready, someone's coming to say hello."

Walton immediately raised his hand to his ear mike. "Chief they're hostiles in there, not survivors turn back now. Chief answer me." Only static replied to him.


	5. Improv works too

The door parted ahead of James and Nina and the two entered. Inside James identified the survivors around them. Six humans all in body armor, most likely the _Tranquil_ security personnel. 'Finaly some other soldiers.' As they took notice of him most straightened up.

"Good to see a human face for a change." One of the beleaguered men spoke to James before shaking James' hand. "What's the situation marine?"

"Service Chief James Fields, We got a scouting vessel latched on and ready to evac you and your men. What happened here? We received a distress call and came to investigate." For a second the marines eyes seemed to look behind James but the marine discounted at as fatigue, soon enough he looked back to the chief.

"They came down right on top of us, about three ships. We couldn't identify em but whatever they were they packed teeth. Unlike anything we'd ever seen before. In the first few seconds the _Hammer_ erupted from bow to stern. Some kind of energy weapon I think. You say a scouting vessel?" he asked innocently.

"Yes the _Osiris_ gonna be a tight fit though, where are the rest of your men?" James asked after making a quick head count.

"The rest? It's just us chief we're all that made it." Another of the survivors added. James recounted and then continued. "Our thermal scan showed ten thermal signatures just before we boarded, where are the other four crew?"

"Oh wait, we did have some guys who just passed on within the hour, could that have been it. Besides them all that's left is us."

"Someone near death could still have registered on the scan chief; I had no way of telling what condition they were in." James nodded and turned to a piece of equipment in the center of the room. "Alright then we'll head back. Servicemen can you disengage that jammer I need to contact our ship. No sense hiding from our own side."

The tall man near the device immediately went to the controls and turned off the generator. "Much obliged crewmen, I'll get on the horn to…" as he lifted his hand to his helmet mike another voice entered his ear. "Fields this is Walton you're walking into a trap get out of there now." Before the sentence ended James was reaching for his shotgun but the barrel of another weapon pressed up against his back.

"Don't even think about it human." A low gravely voice spoke into his ear. Keeping his eyes straight forward as the figure behind him stripped him of both his weapons. He turned to see Nina, her face still shielded by the helmet's visor. One of the 'survivors' came up to her and quickly relieved her of her weapons as well. The figure behind him finaly revealed themselves. Standing before the marine nearly two meters tall, a Krogan's menacing eyes stared back at him.

James had always discounted the possibility of ever running into one of the burly aliens in his space bound tours. Although they worked from time to time as mercs he'd never ended up running into one even before being assigned to the _Osiris_. Now staring down the barrel of a shotgun held by one, he realized that maybe meeting one earlier might have prepared him for the encounter.

Behind the Krogan a skinny Salarian emerged from the massive creature's shadow. The black eyed alien looked over the two marines and then turned to the Krogan.

"Vulern why didn't you just shoot them, now they know what we are." The high pitched voice annoyed James almost as much as the alarm that had started all this trouble.

"They came with more, better we let them lead us back to their ship then have to search this monster for it. Besides, none of them are ever gonna make it back to Alliance Command. Rays get that jammer back on, and then take Haokris and the Fabuls and find their ship and secure it. Let me know when its done."

James could figure out what the pirate meant by secure and he was none to happy that he'd been responsible for all this happening. 'Snap out of it marine. You have to think of something or the crew's dead all because of you.' Someone behind him nudged him with the butt of a gun as the pirates moved the Alliance personnel back to the open door. Nina turned to one of their captors, one of the humans who had first greeted them. "You traitors will get what's coming too you."

James figured she spoke to either Fabul or Rays. He'd noticed a Turian to be the fourth member of the group and Haokris was the only name he figured stood out a bit. "Sue me tech, a livings a living. If our places were switched I'm sure you wouldn't have any trouble from this position."

The group entered the corridor right before the airlock, the intersection they had split ways with Walton at. James made his move. "Thanks merc I'm glad someone finaly put her in her place. Your lucky your just our captors, I can't believe I'm gonna die cause she just had to go be a hero and check for survivors." He couldn't see her reaction but the speed at which her helmet turned to face him told him he'd gotten her attention.

"How dare you marine, I showed you the scan I didn't say anything about jumping aboard." They'd stopped a little ways from the intersection. James watched as one of the mercs circled around behind Nina to make sure their was no escape route.

"Sure blame me just cause you want to impress the captain and get off that dump, you think I don't want off myself." He shouted back at her as the Turian stepped in. "Shut it you to before I put a round in your head. We only need one of you." He ordered. "Oh go ahead and shoot him do us all a favor." Out of the corner of his eye James saw the flicker of movement, but as he turned back the Turian brought it's pistol to bear on Nina. "That's it I told you to shut the…"

James brought his helmet down with as much force as he could and was rewarded with a loud crack as the upper part of the armored helmet crashed down on the neck of the Turian. Nina took a second to realize what was going on before she kicked out at the merc next to her as fast as she could. The blow connected with the merc's crouch plate but even with the suit he wore he could still feel the pain. The man dropped immediately, dropping his weapon and grinding his teeth in agony.

From the other entrance Walton appeared guns blazing spraying the entire are with weapons fire. Though most of his shots ran wild he managed to make a few connections brining down at least one of the mercs. James ducked and held Nina low until the firing stopped. But there was still one merc standing. Walton had overheated the weapon and now the last merc lined him up in his sights. As fast as he could James grabbed the Turian's pistol and lined up a shot right as the merc fired.

He heard Walton's cry of pain but pushed past it making sure his aim was true. He pulled hard on the trigger and the rounds roared forward reaching maximum velocity in the small space. The fire ripped through the mercs helmet, sending the man's head reeling back as a spurt of a blood exited one of the bullet holes. As the corpse fell to the floor with a thud so did Walton.

Nina immediately rushed to him trying to do everything she could as James collected his shotgun and pistol from the downed Turian. "Collins get him ready for transport." Nina nodded as she tried to prop up the larger man against the bulkhead. Turning back to the battle scene James approached the only enemy survivor. The man Nina had injured lay crumpled against the opposite wall trying to reach his pistol. The way he moved gave James the impression he'd sprained something when he fell. The marine dropped his foot on the pistol and then kicked the weapon away before kicking the merc in the face to turn him to the marine.

"Who are you guys and what happened to the fleet." James asked while keeping his weapon trained on the man's face. The kick must have been a wee bit too hard, blood poured from the mercs mouth and then James realized he'd received some wounds from Walton's barrage. "We just arrived, we found it like it was. We had nothing to do with the attack." He let out a hoarse cough that expelled some blood. His breathing was strained and with out medical care he wouldn't last long. "Lies," James pressed down hard on the biggest collection of entry wounds causing another shout of pain. "Tell me who you work for now!"

"Ask… the…Krogan. He's the one that paid us." And with that the merc last breath escaped and then his head came to rest on the floor. James looked down at the corpse trying to figure out what next to do. He quickly searched the body to find a pair of datadisks as well as an OSD. Before he rose up Nina's voice entered his ear. "Fields we have to get Walton back to the _Osiris_, Now!"

James quickly nodded and then bent down near his fallen comrade who now lay unconscious. It took a bit of work but the marine hoisted Walton up and over his shoulder though it wasn't the best position James wanted to be in if the mercs came investigating. They entered the airlock and once the doors to the command deck were open, Nina immediately set off to inform the captain. James let Walton down, propped up against the ship's walls and then closed the airlock. As the door slid shut he saw through the small viewport that the next set of doors were unlocking. The large hatchway opened and the Krogan and the remaining mercs emerged immediately seeing the carnage before them. 'Serves you right you bastards. And that's just the start. When I get back to HIGHCOM, They're gonna want someone to track you murderers down. And I think I've got front row seats to that event. See you soon.'

The _Osiris_ disengaged with the _Tranquil_ airlock and set off for open space. Nearing the edges of the Farinata System, James collected his thoughts. Walton was stable and would be up and running once they got him to an Alliance medical station, and Nina was ok, not exactly fine with some of the things James had done to her but able to look past that to the results. The marine stared out into the stars as the navigator closed them in on the system's mass relay. James' didn't care about her understanding though, he hoped in time she'd forgive him but when you had your back against the wall you had to improvise, he felt his drill instructor back on Earth would be proud of him but that wasn't what he needed to focus on. Once they reported to command he'd have to make it clear he was ready to be the marine he needed to be. It wasn't too much to ask he figure that'd he be put in place of the search was it? He pushed the thoughts away, for now he had one heck of a report to right up, he couldn't let Nina fill in all the blanks…


	6. New Orders

The _Osiris _docked with the SSV _Commonwealth_ within the next day. Walton was immediately transferred to the carrier's medical facilities, while James and Nina followed the commander toward the bridge of the Alliance vessel. The commander had decided against making the long trek to Arcturus and instead chosen to bring the _Osiris_ to a much closer friendly haven. The _Commonwealth_ was one of the newest Keratau Class Carriers, worth her weight in credits every time she went into action. The carrier also held one of the finest mobile hospitals in the Alliance Navy as well as having a direct line to HIGHCOM back on Earth.

As James walked the close corridors he remembered the first time he'd been aboard the behemoth, receiving trauma care after the Siege at Godlsine. He couldn't have asked for a better care for Walton. The tech had sustained major bleeding as with the last merc's dieing horah but the medical personnel had told them after a few days he'd be ready to get back to work. The three individuals moved quickly through the main corridor of the vessel, soon arriving at a pair of elevators. The commander led them into the right one and as the doors hissed shut behind them he turned to James.

"Chief I know how you feel and what the two of you went through but there's something you've not learned just yet about the military. Patience, not everything is so run and gun these days. All I'm asking you is to make sure you keep in line, We want full support for this and angering HIGHCOM is not the way to do it. Understood?" James just stared back at the doors from which they entered. "Perfectly sir." James knew the crap that people put you through even for doing the right thing.

Eventually the elevators reached their destination. The doors parted onto the _Commonwealth_'s bridge and the three crewmembers exited. In front of them a seasoned Alliance officer quickly approached. "Rear Admiral Smithorai, current CO of the _Commonwealth_. Your message mentioned this had something to do with the garrison fleet in the Hades Gamma Cluster, what is this about."

Before commander could usher a word James spoke. "The battle group was destroyed." Ignoring the commander's most likely angry stare James just stood at attention. "Quite a bold statement Service Chief, that battle group included seven vessels in it."

"I can assure you the taskforce was destroyed, we have the relevant data as well as recordings of the _Tranquil_ and a boarding action that took place aboard it." The commander handed the admiral the set of files before continuing. "We received a distress call about a day ago, that is to say chief Fields received it. Once he realized the enormity of the message he immediately woke the crew stasis and brought it to my attention. Of course we were too late to see any of the battle but a scan my crewmember Collins revealed that there were several individuals inside the wreckage of the ship. I gave Fields leave to investigate the ship as well as bring the survivors aboard. Once inside however his team realized the suspected survivors were in fact mercs possibly connected to the destruction of the fleet. They managed to eliminate several of the mercs as well as recover this OSD."

He handed over the device for the admiral's inspection. "Encrypted of course, but I'm sure your computers will have a better time at it then my crew had at trying to break it." The admiral motioned for one of his aids who came forward and retrieved the disk. "I'll get my best man on it see what we can find." Turning back to the _Osiris_ crew he continued. "I'll forward your reports and data to HIGHCOM immediately. Get some rest for the time being, I'm sure you'll find our facilities better than the _Osiris_' cramped spaces. I've set you and your crew up at D level Dormitory Block 47. Now if you excuse me I have to get back to monitoring fleet reports, Commander I could use your help if you don't mind. Most of my crew is as green as grass and a veteran officer could help us get them up to code."

Aseldone looked to his subordinates for a second and then nodded. "Sure admiral, not much else I can do for the time being. Collins, Fields I'll expect everyone at the main conference room at 0700 hours tomorrow." The two Alliance personnel moved back into the elevator. As the doors closed behind them James set the elevator to bring them to the main deck of the _Commonwealth_. It was the first time James and Nina were alone since boarding the _Tranquil_.

Concerned with Walton's condition on their trip back to Alliance space James had never had the chance to apologize for treating Nina the way he had. He didn't know if it was best to dwell on it but he felt he owed her that much. "Sorry about some of the things I said back at the _Tranquil_, I just needed a way to keep the mercs distracted for Walton to get into place." Nina eyes turned to him slightly but didn't give him any clue to what she was thinking. A few minutes passed with nothing more than the hum of the elevator until she replied. "You're a marine, you mind thinks on a different level than most. You're trained to look at a situation tactically, and in time act on it though probably not in the easiest way." She let a small smile escape. "My rump still hurts from the landing you put me through.

"I'll give you warning next time. But I'll take your advice about maybe taking more time to look for better options. Hard to think when a Turian's got you at gunpoint." He noted when the doors finaly opened, as they stepped out into the main corridor. The two were just about to exit when a figure appeared before them.

"Chief Fields and Servicewomen Collins I presume." The voice was calm and solemn with a military edge to it. Standing before them was one of least possible things James expected to find on an Alliance Carrier. The Turian before him had dark blue skin but an intricate set of almost shimmering red tattoos on his face. The tattoos marking his entire face gave him the appearance of having a red spider web flowing across his stern face. Though there was no threat in his eyes, James inched his hand a little closer to his pistol for sage measure.

"Who wants to know? The marine shot back quickly as he surveyed the area around them. He saw no other threats in sight but still didn't feel at all comfortable without his body armor and no cover to be found. Beside him Nina also stood nervously trying to figure out just who their visitor was.

"My name is Nalick Koviah, I'm an adjudicator with the Citadel Council." The Turian put forth his hand to shake the marine's. James remained immobile barely even glancing at the alien's attempted greeting. "I'm sorry I thought the gesture was a common amongst your people." James eyed the alien cautiously before responding. "What are you some kind of Spectre?" the alien let out a sharp bark, possibly a laugh by Turian standards but unlike any sound of amusement Nina had ever heard.

"No I'm afraid not, too wild of a bunch for my likes anyway. But I do work for the Council for delicate matters where sending a Spectre in may end up being a waste of resources as well as resulting with negative effects, I'm sure you've seen some of the case files that emerged after Saren went rouge."

James had heard, though only in rumors. The rouge Spectre hadn't been the most model citizen even before he joined the Geth it seemed. Recently investigative reporters had uncovered evidence of crimes committed well before he went rouge. "What does all this have to do with us?" Nina asked quickly before James could respond.

"If you'll just follow me I'll explain everything." The Turian adjudicator turned away from the pair of Alliance soldiers and continued down the main corridor once more. "One of the Council's STG units was operating near the Hades Gamma cluster around the time your own ship received the distress call. Their mission is classified but they managed to intercept the transmission and send it back to the Citadel. I was dispatched with a supply vessel to rendezvous with the _Commonwealth_ and bring you to back to the Citadel for reassignment."

For a moment the marine stood silent. All this effort just to get to him something else was going on here that he want privy to. "Did these orders come from Alliance Command? I don't go anywhere without direct orders from a CO." The Turian arced his head around slightly back to James.

"That seems fairly hypocritical of you Fields, given the mission report made by Alliance Command regarding your action on Jutoaw Secondary." James' faced turned solemn the moment the words left the Turian's mouth. In one fluid movement the marine drew his pistol and squared it on the alien's skull.

"Those files are sealed Turian, you have no right to breach Alliance Military Archives." James fired back quite angrily, keeping his weapon aimed squarely at the Turian's face. Nina had never heard of Jutoaw Secondary but she was sure something of great importance had taken place. To have this affect on James it must not have gone well for the marine and whatever he had been involved with. She decided she'd need to ask the marine about it some other time; the Turian was already talking once more completely ignoring the weapon still tracking his head .

"You'll find that the Council is above such limitations Fields, especially with the recent formation of JTOP." The Turian led them into a large circular chamber. One of the connecting airlock chambers that allowed for easy access to delivery vessels brining fuel and supplies to the _Commonwealth_. "What is JTOP?" the marine asked, slowly lowering his pistol and making sure the room was secure against any ambush that he could foresee.

"JTOP is the Office of Joint Tactics and Operations. The program was actually one of councilor Anderson's first suggested programs after entering the council. Eventually he got the funding as well as the backing of the other council members who saw the need for a better trained and better unified military force. JTOP focuses around joint military forces with a large diversity of species, all working cooperatively to ensure the safety and security of the galaxy on multiple levels. Think of the program as Spectre units on a larger scale but with much more restrictions. JTOP opened the doors for cross over military programs, such as the one that allowed me to look up the relevant data surrounding your career Fields. Multiple citations for bravery under fire, commendations by every single senior officer you had leading up to the Jutoaw Incident. From there, well you know the rest."

The Turian turned to a console on the chamber wall and punched in a security code bringing the third door of the room open. Inside the doorway James could see an access tunnel leading into a ship's airlock point. "You expect me to believe all this and simply follow you to the Citadel."

"I know you Fields, your military to the core, you'll never be able to ignore the impulse to help others and serve the greater good. The Alliance will never trust you to track down the _Tranquil_'s destroyer, but as part of JTOP you may have the opportunity for justice after all. The choice is yours Fields, all I can do is show you the door." The Turian stepped inside the hatchway and disappeared into the airlock. Nina turned toward James waiting for his response.

The marine's expression was almost blank but something in his eyes told Nina that he'd already made his choice. "He's right Nina, I won't be allowed to follow the _Tranquil_ case any further. If this JTOP is all the Turian says it is, then it sounds like something right up my alley." Nina watched as James moved past her into the airlock. "You coming Collins?" Nina looked back the long corridor leading back to the boring and bleak existence aboard the _Osiris_ and then turned back to the marine.

"Guess I can't leave you on your own, I doubt that the Turian would let you throw him around aboard a ruined spaceship. Lead on Chief…"


	7. Arrival

The stock freighter they boarded on their route to the Citadel was a far downgrade from the comfortable environment of the _Commonwealth. _Though James greatly disliked travel across the stars in any form, he always felt more secure with a full plate of starship armor protecting him than the confines of a trade vessel. Nina did her best to keep him from dwelling on it.

"What happened back on Jutoaw James?" The marine looked up from cleaning some of the new dents to his armor. Nina tried to read his face but like almost every time she'd seen him he had the same steely faced expression. Ironically racial qualities of the marine easy enough to distinguish, predominantly Caucasian his face also showed a mixture of bits and pieces of many other ethnicities most likely to growing up on the American continent. But his natural eagerness in battle and somewhat narrow-mindedness reminded Nina of the ways of ancient Vikings she had read about so long ago in school. The tech specialist registered all this before James finaly responded.

"It's along story Nina, and not something I usually like remembering, didn't you ever go through something that you felt could instantly bring back immediate suffering if you even just faintly thought about it?" He said while putting a few more drops of cleaning fluid he had procured onto a rag.

"I guess not, I did some things that would probably make my father cringe if he knew but I never went through a situation that I disliked even thinking about." She looked across the table back at the marine waiting to hear his response.

"I have, Jutoaw is one of the reasons that I ended up on the _Osiris_. It was my first mission as a Lieutenant, just promoted for my previous actions. It was the first time I had soldiers under my command." He continued cleaning the armor plate. As he started examining the piece once more he went on. "My unit was sent to Jutoaw Secondary in the Odtklav system. Place had just been colonized and me and my troops were stationed there to oversee security until the corporation in charge of the colonization effort brought in their own people. For me it was a time to relax and look over all I'd been through and accomplished from just 2 years being a marine. My superior officers all foresaw great things for me in the future and the assignment was simply to get me used to being in charge of an operation." The marine paused momentarily to move to the next piece of armor before continuing.

"For a while it was just as they'd intended, I kept a close eye over my troops and even started some training regimens for some of the colonists looking to learn a few tricks of the trade, one of the best times in my life when I come to think of it. But those things never work out the way you plan them. Odtklav is pretty small and out of the way, it's along a route that leads back to the Citadel from the Kepler Verge, but takes twice as long so unless you're a navigator with more than two brain cells in you can plot a faster course. What I mean to say is it's the road not taken, even by pirates and the scum of the universe but it was exactly what a STG squad had in mind for making a silent retreat from the Verge."

At this Nina stopped him, "STG?" she asked quickly. She'd heard Nalick use the term in their previous conversations but never had picked up on what it meant.

James took his eyes off his work once more. "Special Task Groups, they're a division of the Council that specializes in infiltration and spy warfare. Kind of like the eyes of the Council in some aspects. Anyhow this STG squad was…"

"Chief, Adjudicator Nalick wants you on the bridge asap, says you should bring Ms. Collins with you. Cebraul out." It was the most words the marine had heard their captain speak the entire voyage, and pretty demanding at that. Not having a time piece on him he couldn't immediately figure out just how long they'd been jumping from mass relay to the next. He led Nina to the only elevator aboard the old trade vessel and had to press hard on the activation key to even get the heap moving. The metallic screech that filled his ears was about as welcome as the _Tranquil_ had been, but soon enough the grated doors parted and the pair exited onto the bridge.

In front of them Nalick and their captain, a Batarian named Cebraul watched over banks of sensors and controls as they brought the ship to their destination. Still obscuring their view Nalick finaly acknowledged their prescense. "Welcome to the Citadel my friends." He slid out of the way to allow the two humans plenty of room to stare out the cabin's only view port. The sight of the massive station compelled Nina into a new sense of ah for the things that Humanity had stumbled into back on Mars. The bunkers paled in comparison to the might station that slowly but surely filled more and more of the trade ship's viewport. The sheer enormity of even the large arms of the station gave the technician a new understanding of scale.

"You could fit hundreds of ships in that space maybe even thousands." She exclaimed with a mix of awe and wonder as Cebraul started exchanging queries with one of the Citadel flight controllers. "Confirmed Trade Vessel Xeta Nine you are cleared to dock at the Presidium priority hanger. Control out." The communications equipment squawked as the Batarian turned back to them.

"Alright humans it will take us a few minutes to dock why don't you grab your gear and get situated. As soon as you get off my boat I gotta get back to the traverse." The four eyed being said to them as he started running approach procedures. Returning once more to the lower level the Batarian's words finaly registered in James' mind. 'A few minutes,' he'd heard even high clearance military vessels couldn't even arrive at dock with the Citadel in less than an hour. Just what did that crazy captain think…

The marines thoughts were interrupted by the sudden roar of the ship's engines. Almost violently the ship burst from its slow speed into an almost FTL velocity causing a great deal of motion from the entire ship. Having no where to go but the other walls of the elevator, James crashed right into the exit doors of the lift just before Nina crashed into him pinning him to the grated doors. As the rumble and speed continued Nina managed to turn slightly so that she could see his face. "Don't get any ideas marine, you're just softer than that steel grating." Just as she finished the ship as quickly as it had gone to an almost terminal velocity returned once more to its slow almost mournful pace and hum.

The energy keeping Nina and James pined to the wall disappeared as quickly as it had manifested and the two dropped down to the floor causing Nina to utter a small curse as the bulkier marine fell on top of her. Looking back up at him she saw a small smile spread across his face.

"Ideas about what Ms. Collins?" he asked innocently before she brought up her right knee to his gut. With an off he rolled off of her trying to laugh away the blow as the two rose. Nina brushed off some dust from her hair and uniform as she looked at the chief. "That." The doors parted and she immediately exited leaving James alone in the elevator. The small smirk returned as he followed her back to the storage room they had used during the trip.

James assembled the individual plates of his armor and then set them all back in his duffel bag before bring the container up and over his shoulder. Nina concentrating completely on her work and finished just as Nalick came forward to lead them to the exit. James turned to look at Nina but she kept her gaze full on the Turian's back. as they exited onto a finely polished metallic ramp Nalick turned back to his human companions.

"Welcome to the heart of the Galaxy. I'm sure you'll find it an adequate residence while you're stationed here." He withdrew an OSD from one of his suit's pockets and then gave it to Nina. "That contains all the information I've been given on your assignment, you're to be briefed tomorrow mourning which is actually in fact just a few hours away way if memory serves me right."

James had never even considered that he'd slowing gotten used to a ten hour day over the years but he'd never learned some of the time differences throughout the galaxy. Thankfully enough Nina had the foreknowledge to succeed where he had not. She briskly moved forward and matched her timepiece directly to Nalick's making sure they would have accurate time. He made a mental note to ask her once he found a suitable watch.

Nalick led them once more and eventually came to rest at a cluster of elevators that seemed to encircle the entire floor. This must be that tower we saw coming in, this place is enormous. Before he could ponder more Nalick was speaking again. "These elevators will take you down to the wards where your temporary lodgings are stationed. I'm afraid another Council matter requires my attention and I must leave you to your own devices. I bid you good luck at that I may see you in your future travels." Once more he held out his hand to shake James. Remembering how he had acted previously James almost immediately shook it this time nodding to the Turian before letting go, Nina followed suit and then the Turian moved past them down to the center of the floor.

"Good luck humans, until we meet." And the Turian disappeared into the crowds.


	8. The friend of my Enemy is still my Enemy

Nina and James took the elevator down straight into the wards. They emerged onto a large walk way roughly of the same slate gray that James had seen throughout the entire Citadel. Directly in front of them a long barrier stretched across the entire walkway. In front of the railing the two humans could see another great view of just the sheer size of the station. Of course they couldn't waste too much time sight seeing. The entire walkway was almost as crowded as the docking level and the two were almost immediately swarmed by a mess of beings going about their daily task aboard the Citadel. With the time change if was effectively the tenth hour, the start of a new day but neither being was completely tired but they chose to continue on to find their home for the night.

Eventually thanks mostly to the VI terminals that seemed to dot the entire area; they arrived at their individual abodes. The two rooms were set right next to each other and were just two of hundreds that dotted the stretch of station that the VI had led them to. As Nina swiped her ID tag to gain entrance, James turned to her.

"You need any help just call me." He said sincerely but the instead he got the same cool expression she'd been sporting since they arrived.

"I'm a big girl Fields I can take care of myself. Sleep tight marine." The door slid shut behind her leaving James alone with his thoughts. Entering his room he immediately dropped his duffel and then took in the area. The room wasn't small but it wasn't too large either. Quaint and cozy it was just fine for his standards. The bed seemed a good few levels above the smelly bunk he'd used on the _Osiris_.

But he wasn't ready to call it a night just yet. It was his first time on the Citadel and the human drive to explore compelled him to check out the sights take in his new environment. He accessed the small terminal set into the sole desk in the room. Searches for clubs brought up a huge list of sites, but he found one that'd been suggested to him by a fellow marine should he ever make it to the Citadel. Making sure his pistol was secure he left the small room and headed for the nearest rapid transit station.

Entering the bar called 'Chora's Den' James immediately was surprised at the level of activity in the club even as late as it was. It seemed all the energy of repairing the Citadel systems eventually brought more people to seek entertainment after a hard day's work. Dozens of species dotted the entire club, some watching the Asari dancers while others simply convened and talked of their exploits from far and wide. James saw an open seat at the bar and immediately took it. In front of him a Salarian barkeep emerged.

"Good mourning human, looking for a strong wake up call?" the Salarian species had never really bothered James all that much. He found their look and mannerism interesting actually. Short lived like humans they were beings of action, exactly why a lot served in the STG units and other military programs but enough still found the hustle and bustle of operating in places like this enjoyable.

"Whatever you got that's strong but will let me make it out of here in a few hours." The dark eyed alien blinked a few times and then disappeared beneath the bar eventually emerging with a large glass as well as a bottle of unknown liquid.

"I believe this will do the trick, a mix concocted some time ago by a variety of humans actually, just make sure you take your time with it." He poured the think blue liquid into the glass before sliding it up to the marine. "You rush it and we'll have to drag you out of here in a few hours. Let me know if you need anything else." Once more the grey skinned being returned to his discussion with the Asari next to him.

James took the glass in his hand and slowly brought the tip of the glass to his mouth, easing the liquid down. As the fluid entered his system his first impulse was to cough it up. The immediately freezing sensation had not been expected but soon it came back to more suitable levels. Unlike any alcohol he'd experimented before the main taste was almost honey like but with the same twinge of feeling he'd experienced with any beers. Surprisingly the beverage seemed to revitalize his entire being bringing his senses alive as he continued with the drink.

The marine enticed as he was with the drink did not notice the group Turians approaching behind him. He did notice when the lead being, one who's face was matte black save for to jagged white tattoos that formed a unique X pattern across his rough skin. James smelled a faint scent of alcohol about the alien, but it could very well have been his own.

"You human, was Saren a menace and a criminal. Was he responsible for countless lives being lost when the Citadel was attacked?" The Turian asked him, its voice sounding increasingly hostile with each word.

"Where have you been Turian, it was all over the news. Saren went Rogue, tried to take out the Council and the citadel." James started feeling a weird sensation crossing through him and realized a bit too late how potent his drink order was. He should have ended it there but his pride wouldn't leave the issue at that. "Way I hear it, if it wasn't for Commander Shepard and his crew, nobody would have survived. Any other questions you need…"

The blow was unexpected, and rather fast at that. The force of the punch plastered James against the wall but before the next blow came he bounded off the counter blocking the next punch with his left hand while striking with his right. James didn't think he was that drunk but his aiming was a bit off. He managed to ward off the blow but his strike hit the Turian behind the leader. Now he'd made a big mistake, he could handle one Turian he believed. Three all acting against him that was a different accord.

James could faintly hear the Salarian bartender trying to stop the fight before it erupted full scale. Other than that James didn't hear much, he was too busy trying to gain a defense against his foes. The first few blows were easy to deflect but eventually they became rather accurate. The punches connected across his face but he managed to still keep his wits about him. With his right arm trying to cover his face he used his left hand to grab onto the Turian to his left. He pulled the alien closer to him ignoring the pain as they raked his body with punches and jabs. He swiftly brought up his knee right into the Turian. The blow must have been harder than James had though because it brought at least the one Turian down howling in anger but he still had the others to deal with.

Not having to block as many blows as before James kicked out with his right leg connecting with the Turian on with his right to at least get him out of the fight for a few seconds. Once more one on one for however long James was able to bring his full training to bear on the Turian who'd started the debacle. The two almost equally matched grappled continuously trying to get the other in a hold or head lock. Eventually the alien let loose with his own martial prowess and delivered a kick series of kicks to James legs, dropping the marine. With the momentary lapse in concentration the Turian got the marine in a head lock. James was just about to lose consciousness when he heard the safety lever of a weapon being turned off. The two looked up into the barrels of several C-Sec officers. The Turian released his grip on the marine and then immediately tried to reconcile with the lead officer.

"Constable this man insulted my great uncle and has disgraced my family honor. He must die for his insolence." James slowly picked himself up and then with his right hand tried to clear away the blood flowing from a broken nose. The officer looked at all who'd been involved with the fight at then turned to the Salarian barkeep.

"Outhi you alright over there?" the Turian officer asked while still keeping an eye on James and the other Turians. The Salarian emerged with a very shaky grip on a shotgun he'd procured from under the bar. Once seeing that everything was under control he lowered the weapon.

"Uh yes, Rel, just a few broken glasses easily replaced." He said in his faster than average voice.

"Is he telling the truth?" he turned his head toward the lead Turian. The Salarian's eyes dotted back and forth between James and the Turians before replying.

"That one made a rather cryptic question to the Human." He said while pointing to the Turian. "The Human answered not angrily but simply answered and then the Turian assaulted him. I think you can guess the rest." The C-Sec officer nodded and then motioned to his guards. Quickly James and the other offenders were cuffed and being escorted out of the club. As the club resumed its usual beat and rhythm the Salarian, observed the bottle that the human had been nursing. He made a note to warn future consumers of the draught potency and then returned it to the shelf built into the bar.

"I'm telling you I have a briefing with a council representative in a few hours I have to be there." James shouted from the holding cell they'd placed him in. The room was especially barren, save for a small cot and sink to use but besides that all it the room entailed was six grayish walls and a door that James had been yelling at on a continual basis. Finaly giving up his shouts he lowered himself to one of the walls realizing now he should have just caught some shut eye in his room. His one chance to remain on the front lines of the galaxy seeming to burst into nothingness because he'd felt he had to try out the local venues. Now locked away in the C-Sec brig all he had were his thoughts.


	9. JTOP Headquarters

Locked away in the C-Sec prison cell James tried to think up some way to get out of his predicament. He had no way of figuring out what time it was and he feared missing the council briefing. He was just about to give up and try to at least get some sleep. When he heard a weird sound coming from beyond the cell door. With a hiss of smooth running machinery the door opened and light spilled into the small place. He raised his hand to block out the light but a two figures soon eclipsed most of the light.

"That's him constable." A voice spoke, still disoriented he could find any distinguishing characteristics to match its owner. Soon enough one of the C-Sec officers entered and helped him out of the cell. The elated feeling rushing through him almost caused the marine to knock his head against the frame but once he was out he finally managed to stretch out his full frame. In front of him Nalick and Nina both look frustrated with him.

"Seems you just cant stay out of trouble these days James." The Adjudicator said before the guard unlatched the marine's bindings.

"I went to talk to you earlier and then realized you left, figured you might end up here all the same." Nina said with a sly smile. James rubbed his forearm where the binding had been digging in to his skin.

"Why is it always my fault when something happens? You weren't there." He pointed a finger toward the Turian. "That guy had it out for me, if we weren't at the bar we'd probably still be fighting or dead even." He exclaimed as he followed Nalick out of the holding area.

"Yes Ledran Arterius is not one to take kindly to humans talking ill of one of his families' most honored heroes. He comes from the old ways Chief, personnel honor is still a top priority for some people back home. He did intend to fight, but he also intended to use his connections to the Turian Hierarchy to get away with killing you. Thanks mostly to you, we were able to avoid that outcome and he has been punished in a fitting way." They exited the lower levels and then stepped out onto the main level of the C-Sec Academy.

"I'm glad to hear it, can I still make the meeting?" James asked as he felt their pace quickening slightly.

"Only if you can keep up with Ms. Collins and me." The place had an eerie blue glow to it but the feel was all business, everywhere he looked officers were coming and going all with purpose. Guess crime doesn't sleep anywhere these days the marine thought as the group went down a small stairway. Eventually they hung a left and emerged at a room full of weapons lockers dotting each wall. In front of them a lone Turian.

"Ah Adjudicator Nalick, I trust this is Chief Fields." He opened a security safe near his desk and withdrew a small parcel. "Your belongings chief, everything you had on you at the bar. I trust next time you may pick another venue for entertainment. Good day Adjudicator." Securing his pistol onto his utility belt James made sure to keep pace with Nalick who now was leading him to some new destination. He felt foolish to have not even asked Nina for what the time and location info had been stored on the OSD but it was too little too late.

The group enter the Presidium elevator and James decided he better try to get some info. "So what exactly will the meeting be about Nalick?" he asked as the elevator raced through the central spire of the Citadel.

"All I can tell you is be prepared to listen clearly chief, that's all I've been ordered to say." The elevator stopped and the turian motioned the humans in. "This time try not to get into a bar fight after I've done my work." As soon as the two alliance soldiers exited the turian closed the doors behind them and then continued upward. Finally taking a look at the area James assumed the level must have been hit hard during the Reaper attack. Nina seemed to know how to get to their destination so he did his best to follow here while observing the scene.

There were no signs of activity or anything really just walls and a few crates, maybe a storage level. But it seemed such a waste, the Citadel wasn't overpopulated but surely some offices or housing could be put in place here to improve efficiency. Suddenly he almost ran into Nina and realized they must have arrived. Looking past her he found a large metallic door. A symbol had been etched into the door with craftsmanship that made even some of the Citadel look a bit scruff. The symbol was the standard Citadel symbol roughly a Earth starfish with it's arms sprawled out. But it had a circle surrounding it. Just under the crest four letters in a sleek text were written. J T O P. They had reached the Office of Joint Tactics and Operations.


	10. Dawning of the Cohort

The two humans entered the doorway, finnaly arriving at the JTOP Headquarters. The large room they had just entered was an expansive amphitheater, complete with large banks of seats as well as a large stage set in the base of the room. Five crimson flags were situated inside the space. Two on each side of the theater and one set at the back of the stage. Each had the symbol of the office embroidered in gold lettering. A multitude of beings from almost every species in the galaxy were present. Humans, Turians, Salarians, Asari, even a few Batarians and Krogan groups were present though they were keeping mostly to themselves.

There was even a few species that James couldn't identify but they were predominately were sticking close to the Turian soldiers. The beings were between two species. One was made up of tall bipedal beings whose faces reminded James of Walruses back on Earth. The species seemed to have varied ornamentation on their twin tusks that varied from a few inches long to almost half a meter. It seemed the leaders had longer tusks as well as the more intricate decorations. The other race was about as tall as Volus but greatly differed from the round bodied merchant race. Their skin was pale green and dotted with large black splotches on the skin not covered by sleek grey armor. The beings had three eyes two set forward as with most being and one set in the back of their skull. Their nostrils were small slits and Nina thought she saw the slither of a tongue appear on one of them. She was about to mention it to James when the two heard a voice behind them.

"Client races," a low mellow tone said behind them. James and Nina turned to the sound and were surprised to see one of the Walrus-like beings they had just seen stareing at right behind them. This one's tusks were about half as long as the largest James had seen possibly indicating his age or status. No ornamentation was seen on either tusk but the alien did have a cybernetic eye emplacement over his right eye. The main piece was a whitish silver metal while the lens was a midnight blue.

James turned back to the other beings and finaly understood his words. 'Of course, the Turian Empire had multiple client races beside the Volus.' James had just never seen any besides the large bellied merchants. Once he turned back to being he was about to introduce himself but it was Nina who spoke up.

"I've never heard of the other client races besides the Volus. I didn't realize I knew so little about them or your…I'm sorry I don't know who you are or even what your name is." She asked almost embarrassingly, James thought the alien may be angry over the question but the being's large eyes simply blinked in her direction before he at least judging by their voice he was a he, continued.

"My name is Sol'kahf, my people are the Broulians. We were one of the first client species of the Turians, but over time the vast majority of our species earned their citizenship from serving as auxila in the Turian Grand army during the Turian's first golden age and the conquests the times included. That was quite some time ago and now most of our entire species descends from free Broulians but we are often still considered part of the Turian Empire. We don't hold embassies in the Citadel and do not work much in Citadel Space. Most of our time and lives involves continuously launching large voyages into the edges of Dark Space to find new land for our population. I'm afraid the details about those voyages are closely guarded secrets but suffice to say it keeps us from having much activity besides trade and cooperation with the Turians and their other client races."

"If the majority of you are free from the Turians, why are you here as part of JTOP?" James asked Sol'kahf as most of the beings started falling in and taking seats in the amphitheater. 'The meeting must be starting soon' James thought to himself wishing once more he'd looked at the OSD last night. The three started following a few others to a row of seats as the Broulian continued.

"A few of us descend from what are known as the Order of Guardians, the group long served as close bodyguards to Turian generals while they were at war. Those of us who honor these old ways finely hone our skill at close combat weaponry while also studying extensively at more modernized weaponry. I myself am fluent in seven forms of defensive and offensive combat techniques attuned to what you humans would identify as a double edged long sword." James took noticed of the expertly crafted and jewel encrusted scabbard that was slung across the back of Sol'kahf's armor. He didn't have much time to observe the sword itself as the trio took their seats and then waited for the start of the meeting to begin.

Before long the lights dimmed in the large space and the lights set on the stage grew slightly brighter illuminating the main area of theater. As silence slowly fell across the crowd a lone being appeared on the stage. Stepping up to the stage's podium a single, surprisingly muscular Volus took center stage. The being was quite different compared to the others James had seen on his travels, the Volus still had the height that was typical of it's brethren but its frame was not round or ball shaped but lean even though the environmental suit it wore was bulky. Its suit was also unique to the individual, the main suit was grayish black with two long red stripes that started at the base the suit's neck piece and traveled all the way down to where the suit disappeared into his metallic boots. The only weapon James saw on the alien was a small pistol attached to the suit's right side, it looked ordinary enough but James knew things are often not what they appear.

"Welcome esteemed guests, to the Office of Joint Tactics and Operations." James wondered why this Volus did not require breathing in between almost every third word, a characteristic shared by every other Volus he'd met. He made a note to ask the general if he ever talked to him in personally.

"I am General Itrad Hetui, formerly of the Turian Military. I know my species are not usually associated with military leaders but I assure you I am quite competent as both a leader and a warrior. Due to the dramatic increase in pirate and terrorist activity at both the edges of the Terminus systems as well as assaults on colonies as close as one jump away from the Serpent Nebula, JTOP has initiated several new regiments to serve as heavily equipped response groups to counter these new threats. If you choose to join us you will train to a new peak of expertise in combat effectiveness. You will sever all ties with your previous government and swear loyalty to the safety and protection of the Council and its interests. You will become an extension of the Council, a new line of defense ready to stand your ground against enemies of the Citadel. If you choose not to join us you can return to your respectful vocations, I'll give you an hour to make your decision." And with that the General left the stage and the main theater lights returned to their usually standard. Soon enough the conversations started up again flooding the room with both arguments and agreements, James looked for where the general had moved to but could not find his form amongst the crowds.

He decided he'd meet the Volus soon enough and decided to resume his conversation with Sol'kahf. "So who are the other species talking with the Turians?" he asked turning his head back to the Broulian.

"They are called Otrales, one of the more recent client races, they hail from a world dying from war, for so long disputes ravaged their land through the ages to the point that they almost killed off their entire species. Turian agents found their collection of worlds and showed the Otrales the wonders of Prothean technology. It opened the Otrales eyes to the much larger galaxy and a large number of them decided to join the Turians as a client species, however many remained stern in their beliefs and would not drop their weapons so easily. These Otrales against the joining attacked major government centers just beginning to unify the majority of the population. Several Turians were killed and the empire sent in a few legions to quell the resistance movement. I remember it quite clearly, I was part of an auxila team assigned to bring down their orbital defense towers but they fought with a ferocity unseen in the empire. Dozens of my fellow soldiers were cut down by the seemingly endless mass of the enemy combatants, intelligence had botched the mission from the start and we were forced to retreat. 10 years later another armada was created this one with the cooperation of the Otrales who had joined the empire at the start of the conflict. Using their own maneuvers against them we were able to break the resistance movement on their homeworld sealing our victory with a huge triumph the likes of which I'd never seen before. But the war didn't end there, there were still many revolutionaries scattered throughout the Otrales small empire and they did not give up once we'd secured their homeworld. That was over seven hundred years ago and there are still two worlds that the revolutionaries have managed to keep the Turians away from."

James took all this in and then glanced back at a group of the Otrales. "Why don't the Turians do what they did with the Krogan, you know the genophage." He asked as they moved around the crowds. Lines were slowly starting to assemble leading to a large group of desks where a number of beings had already sworn their oath and registered to serve.

"Because the Turians learn from their actions, in my opinion the genophage was not the best choice to deal with the Krogan. True they were a large threat but to have that done to an entire species crosses dangerously close to Genocide in many Broulian's eyes." They finaly found the end of one of the lines and joined the congregation of soldiers waiting to sign up. "So my friends do you intend to join the regiment or does your fate take you elsewhere.

James had known his decision since arriving at the Citadel, he quickly nodded to the Broulian and then he turned to Nina. "I doubt the alliance is ever gonna let me get the guys who attacked the _Tranquil_, I think my only chance is here." Nina thought things over slowly. 'She was a technician, not a soldier. She felt she kept herself in good form but being a soldier in this regiment would mean leaving everything else behind. She'd served the alliance for only a few months and serving on the _Osiris_ wasn't exactly what she had imagined serving humanity would entail though. 'Maybe here I'd be able to really make a mark on the galaxy and humanity' she thought to herself.

She slowly nodded to the marine just as they reached the front of the line. Sol'kahf was first; he registered his military service number and full name to the officer. Next an adjudicator approached him. "Hold up your hand soldier," the Broulian lifted his right gauntlet and started the oath of service. After he was finished James was next. He gave his ID tags to the officer who scanned it.

"Service Chief Jameson Fields of the Systems Alliance, heard about what happened out in the Farinata system. Rough business out there, glad you'll be joining the office." He swiped James' ID tags in another machine and then handed it back to James. "Your ID now states your status as a JTOP recruit, you're still an alliance officer in many aspects but now you are part of a Council Defense Group, make no mistake you're not a Spectre nor are you above the law, but you are above the rank in file. Continue to the adjudicator." James nodded and waited a moment for Sol'kahf to finish.

"Hold up your right hand human," the turian adjudicator asked as he brought up an ancient tome opening up to a premarked destination. "Are you ready to take on the responsibilities and duty brought on to members of the Office of Joint Tactics and Operations?"

"Yes sir," James said standing at attention as the adjudicator continued. To his right he heard various others repeating his response.

"Do you take it upon yourself to serve as a guardian of peace for the galaxy and protect Council space far and wide?" the turian asked as his finger skimmed through the next line of text.

"I am ready to serve." The marine replied as Nina started taking her oath somewhere to his right.

"Welcome to JTOP Recruit Fields, training starts tomorrow afternoon, arrive here promptly at the eleventh hour." He handed James a few forms each with the seal of the office printed on them. "Bring these with you to training tomorrow, dismissed."

This time James made sure to get right to sleep, he didn't know what to expect at boot tomorrow but he figured he better be ready for just about anything. A Volus general would not have been promoted in the Turian army for maintaining an easy regimen, James knew that whatever was in store for him and Nina would be unlike anything they'd experienced before. Setting down for a good rest James let his mind wonder over just how far he'd made it.

When James and Nina returned to the JTOP headquarters they were led away from the amphitheater to a new area. The room was huge but rather simple. A large stretch of steel that made up the floor was the biggest point of interest. Besides that it reminded James of just a larger than life sports complex. There were already dozens of recruits that had started going through a series of stretches and calisthenics in the same dull green uniforms that James and Nina had found waiting for them back at their apartments. They noticed Sol'kahf easily enough, the tall Broulian seemed be having a good deal of frustration with his undersized uniform. He finally subsided and returned back to trying to out some combat maneuvers in the untested suit.

"How does your mourning go Nina?" the tall being asked as he went through the next series of maneuvers. The string of attacks seemed to be intended for breaking enemy holds and headlocks. James made a note to ask him about some of his techniques in case he ever ran into that turian again.

"Fine enough, I didn't have to go down to C-Sec and get a certain marine out of holding again." She said with a smirk to James. The marine smiled back at her as he started stretching out his arms. All around them more and more recruits arrived. Humans didn't seem to have a majority but he did several here and there. Turians made up the most of the population primarily since military service was mandatory for their species. It made sense that quite a few of them would have ended up here. Everyone was deeply concentrated on their workouts, making sure their bodies were well prepared for whatever the day brought. After about a half hour of free workout a loud bell chimed. On cue dozens of black uniformed drill instructors entered into the stadium and surrounded the recruits.

"Form groups of eight as your names are announced! First group Tiro, Jarakul, Kently, Yotaris. ….." The speaker continued as James looked to find the source of the voice but the marine could find it. The drill instructors stood rigid and foreboding as they watched as the recruits were divided up. James hadn't even started to start a head count but he was sure there was at least a few hundred there assembled in the stadium. He returned his attention back to the speaker when he heard Nina's name called. "Collins, Vulcrius, Gerick, Fields, Aftun, Sol'kahf. Seventh group…"

He'd hoped whoever was diving them up would keep him in Nina's unit. He didn't feel she needed someone to watch her back but he wanted to at least know someone in this new unit. He was also glad to have the Broulian on his team as well, Sol'kahf had proved to be an interesting individual and the marine was eager to see him in combat. As the group formed together one individual joining the group caught his eye.

The Turian he'd fought in the bar was in his unit, who made that decision. Ledran Arterius, if he remembered correctly was moving into where the rest of the group had come together. He didn't know who was responsible for assigning him to the same unit as the turian but he knew starting a fight now wouldn't allow James anything except to relieve some frustration. The marine simply nodded in the turian's direction before turning back to the other group members. Sol'kahf was already introducing himself to the group and James was eager to meet the members of his newest team.


	11. Boot

**Disclaimer: I am not a scientist, during this chapter the recruits go through a training operation that might be right or might be blatantly wrong. If it is the later I apologize in advance. I tried to find source material but it's a very futuristic concept so there wasn't much to go on. Just thought I'd say sorry before angering the scientific community. Enjoy. **

The salarian across form James was first to speak. "Tholam Aftun, I served with C-Sec for 4 years now as a computer and tech specialist." the salarian's skin was divided between pale white and dark blue hues. "The call came down for recruits for JTOP so I signed up. Figured C-Sec would be there when I came back."

The next individual was a dark red skinned turian with a patchwork of white and black tattoos framing his face. His voice much like the rest of his species had a slight echo to itself. "Names Bacek Vulcrius, I'm a member of the nineteenth legion in the Turian Army. I served as a shock trooper at the assaults on Ulkoh and Notraulestine, recently the legion was put on reserve and I requested a transfer to the next combat tour. I ended up here."

"Joavn Gerick, short of it is I was a merc for hire." The human had a mangy mop of blue and black hair quite longer than military standards and his frame was befitting that of someone always on the run. He was skinny and his brown skin had a range of tattoos covering his exposed arms. The tattoos ranged from service and campaign badges to a variety of less military sanctioned images. "I got captured on Solcrum during a smugglers meet and the alliance offered me a deal. Serve out a term in the military or go rot on Luna in some 3 by 5 cell. I've been routinely moved from hot zone to hot zone and my superior told me to report here, about it." He finished, eyeing the crowd almost ready to beat back any remark about having a criminal in their midst.

Finaly the team rest their eyes on the last pair of individuals, Ledran Arterius and the cloaked asari. From Arterius they learned he'd been slated for C-Sec and eventually the Spectres once he proved himself, but a line of insubordination had brought reality crushing down upon him and he'd been transferred to JTOP. Cahleura Elinetis was all they got out of the asari but judging from what he'd heard James suspected she was a huntress. He'd heard of the asari's natural biotic powers and how the huntresses became great warriors learning to harness the energy into an array of combat abilities making them formidable adversaries.

All in all the group was unlike anything that James had been a part of before. He was eager to see all the members' skills in action but he knew without a stable level of cooperation no team could hope to survive an engagement. He didn't feel the need to apologize to Arterius just yet but he knew unless the turian left the unit they'd have to work together as a cohesive force and not rivals, even though the marine hardly considered that to be the case.

James' thoughts were interrupted when he heard the sharp loud barks of the drill instructors ordering the recruits to stand at attention facing the north edge of the stadium. As the last teams formed up, back straight, arms aimed to the ground, and heads raised as much as their spines could allow the general appeared. His uniform was the same as before and his unique voice began to fill the stadium.

"Greetings recruits." His tone had changed dramatically from his previous speech, before his voice had been welcoming and inviting but now it was stern as stone, unwavering and full of determination. "For those of you who are interested this regiment has been designated as the 'Cohort' quite the fitting name in my opinion. The cohort unit has made multiple impressions on many cultures of the galaxy. To Turians, it was there earliest form of a unified unit all acting together on the defense or attack. Surprisingly enough the cohort was also a substantial piece of Human history as well. The Romans, an ancient human group who conquered most the known planet used the cohort to a degree of excellence. Like their turian counterparts the human cohort was a unit that lived or died by the sword. Its survival was hinged on the ability of individual soldiers to work together so that they all made it out of the engagement alive." He motioned to the drill instructors and then continued.

"Here we will prepare you for all that the galaxy can throw at you. We will give you extensive teaching with heavy weapons and close combat maneuvers. We will hone your stealth techniques for when your work requires a more delicate touch. And lastly we will hone your ability to trust in your squad mates. Look to your fellow recruits. In time you will be ready to stand beside them as an equal part of one solid unwavering being. You will have to trust the individuals with your life and vice versa. Only united will you stand triumphant against our foes." The volus dipped its head slightly. "And there will be many…Each unit will be assigned an individual drill instructor, they will teach you to expand your abilities as well as your mind. You can no longer think of yourself as the lone soldier, you are part of a team. And as much as you are important to that unit you must realize that without the man or women standing guard beside you, than you are lost. Make no mistake I am not a coward, therefore the soldiers under my command are not cowards. There may come a day when we are asked to stand by, to let the enemy go. I tell you right now that we will disregard such an order. Once we have set out to complete a goal we will be remorseless, we will give no quarter to our enemy. That is all, good luck recruits. You'll need it."

The training began almost immediately; a turian drill instructor appeared besides Nina and started shouting in her ear. "Wake up recruits! I am Drill Instructor Tiberius; I will be your teacher in your new learning of War. Were gonna start things off with a light jog. Fall out! Go go go!" Nina and the rest of the squad instantly started moving. She instantly cursed herself for not routinely stretching out during her time aboard the _Osiris_ but she wasn't the only one having a bit of trouble. All around other recruits who had taken a long space ride to the Citadel were showing signs of physical attrition even as they started. The mob of recruits eventually divided into their individual units and spaces emerged where better conditioned units moved ahead of the pack.

The drill instructors simply took them in the direction of the opposite end of the stadium. James did his best to maintain the faster pace of the instructor but like Nina, too much time in the _Osiris'_ small confines hadn't allowed the marine to keep in peak condition. Only a few minutes in to the run he felt the urge to began a cool down, his entire body was on fire and screaming in protest but he had to move on. This was his only chance to get back to where he'd once been. Alliance or not here he'd make a difference in the galaxy he knew that, if only of course, he made it through training. They ran and ran without pause, their drill sergeants doing everything from berating recruits to giving them a whack with their batons. The light jog turned into a three hour race across the stadium floor and they never even reached the end of the expanse. By the end of it almost all the recruits were bent down gasping to get their breathing under control. James fought the urge to throw up as he tried to get his breathing under control. 'Am I that out of shape?' He thought as he finaly fought back the temptation calming his body down. He looked around to see only Bacek and Cahleura still managing to stand tall.

The asari and the turian were exchanging a few words as he managed to bring himself back up to a standing position. "I wonder exactly what kind of missions they'll send us on." Bacek asked the huntress. Her gaze was solemn and stern but she decided to give the group a few more words this time.

"I heard that JTOP usually gets missions that the council can't rely on Spectres for. That is to say one Spectre is not able to accomplish what a group of trained well armed mercs can do." The asari replied her voice was lyrical but at the same time a little unfriendly. The run hadn't seemed to even faze her, there was not a drop of sweat anywhere, even Bacek had good amount of precipitation on him and he'd ran the whole time.

"We're not mercs, we're not getting paid that much." Joavn managed to shout from the rear of the group. The human had managed to jog the entire length but now he was doubled over trying to catch his breath. James was glad to see Nina had made it alright, he'd seen her helping to make sure Sol'kahf remained on his feet. The Broulian's skin looked slicker than ever from all the sweat seeping down his tall body. For the most part seventh squad had made it alright, though with some labored breathing. Recruits in other squads were being helped up by their fellow squad mates, but James had little time to dwell on it, the drill instructors were shouting again. Soon enough the general's voice boomed once more.

"Well recruits, did we enjoy your mourning walk?" the volus asked sarcastically, only a handful of the recruits managed to utter out "Sir Yes Sir." before they returned to their heavy breathing. He moved down the ranks taking in all the recruits. He was flanked by two other beings. One an all grey turian with an intimidating facial expression and the other, a human mostly of Arabic descent if James was to guess, both were wearing sleek silverish grey uniforms with one black stripe running from collar to their right boot. Set on where the stripe crossed their heart was the JTOP badge. They had to be the general's executive officers or maybe evaluators from the council, keeping an eye on their latest project.

"If you enjoyed that walk I'm sure you'll have fun on our next activity, a space walk, let's say a nice 10 mile jog on one of the wards. Let's set grav compensators to 80." Murmurs were instantly heard throughout the crowd of recruits but quickly beaten down by recruits not wishing for more distance on the trek. James cursed under his breath, gravity compensators where instrumental to any operation in locales with high or low gravity. Bringing the compensators to 80 kilos would increase everyone's weight by roughly 176 pounds. Nobody was looking forward to their newest task and some immediately left uttering an insult to the general as they left. James was sorry to see a large number of those were fellow humans but he wasn't ready to give up just yet. You trained for the worst, hoped for the best, that's what he'd known since boot. Of course if this was just the beginning James was not looking forward to what they'd experience by the end of training.


	12. Culling the Weak

"Listen up maggots you've got one last chance to get this right. Almost every other squad has managed to complete this exercise and they're not gonna wait around for us. You know the setup." Tiberius ordered as he brought up the display for the fifth time in two days. Bravo squad enters the building via the skylight at precisely .45 units into the operation. Alpha teams come in heavy and breaches the west wall." He turned to Aftun, the team leader for the day's exercise.

"You're sure you don't wish to change Gerick's plan recruit? His failed just as well as the rest did." He turned slightly to where James was still nursing a small scorch wound from yesterday's botched mission.

"Recruit Joavn's plan has merit, if executed right. I will switch Collins for Arterius. I think balancing out our tech soldiers between the two squads will help our chances this time around. Other than that change the plan remains the same" The salarian said as he finished strapping on his armor.

"Very well team lead, your funeral." And with that Tiberius left the ready room to allow the squad time to prepare. Frustration and exhaustion were starting to wear on the team. After the space walks back and forth across the wards, most of the recruits had been begging for something new. What they got was the general's little slice of hell. They'd shipped out to the barren world of Klentol. When they'd arrived on the crater infested planet they'd been led to a huge fort located on the highest point for miles. Once they got inside the fort they'd gone on a variety of sim missions and scenarios ranging from capture, evacuation, protection, assault, and many others. Now at hopefully one of the last missions of the day they had run into a problem. Their mission was a sabotage based sim, they needed to enter a heavily defended compound with numerous enemy reinforcements nearby, and destroy a large broadcasting center located in the middle of the building and surrounded by an assortment of enemies. The complex had three entry points. Front door, skylight, and creating their own door in one of the base walls with the limited amount of explosive they had been supplied with.

Their first plan had centered around all the squad entering from the skylight and going for stealth, they'd made it past the insertion point smooth enough but the team hadn't planned on thermal sensors that were inset on the frame of every The other guards had rushed into the small space and easily dispatched the squad.

Their second attempt was to try splitting their munitions between two squads of eight. Sol'kahf had warned that the think walls would most likely be penetrated but team lead Arterius simply ignored the Broulian savoring the victory to come. When they'd triggered the detonator only half the plan worked. Arterius squad breached the complex and immediately eliminated several guards but eventually got bogged down in a long corridor with little cover to speak of. Bacek, in charge of Bravo team had not faired so well with his explosion. Just like Sol'kahf had said the wall had taken a large dent but was other wise intact. The turian scrapped the plan and then led his team to the skylight and not having to worry about stealth they poured in right on top of the main group of guards. The surprised look on the simulated guards' faces were still fresh in his mind as Bravo had repelled down taking out numerous guards as they They managed to pull off the mission but Alpha had suffered three casualties, an unacceptable loss for the team and mission.

When it was Joavn's turn as team lead he had meshed much of the previous plans' working tactics into one conglomeration. Combining a skylight insertion as well as a breach and clear maneuver he felt they'd get the guards attention divided and managed to take away their number superiority. The plan would have worked except once bravo team had secured the skylight insertion point the guards brought up a security protocol locking in the team. Arterius the third best tech savvy trooper was unable to open the doors in time for the team to relieve the pressure off Alpha and the team lost by the casualty rule again. Now with Nina on Bravo team, they'd be able to manage if the security protocol worked again. But still James and the rest of the team were worried. Control of the course was said to be under the command of two Spectres and VI support. This meant they were facing systems that could calculate almost all of their plans as well as individuals who could perform the exact counter attack to send the team into failure.

The teams each prepared for the run, snapping on grenade bandoliers double checking their weapon calibrations, making sure everything was locked and ready to go. As James sat making sure the unfamiliar Thunder IV rifle was in working shape after the last run he noticed a shadow fall over him. Looking up from his weapon he saw the dark intricate face tattoos of Bacek. The turian had proved to be an able soldier, working well during their earlier exercises of hostage retrieval and lockdown. His aim was one of the best in the whole squad but he was not one to gloat about it, the squad left that to Joavn and Arterius.

"Fields I was wondering if I could have a word." The turian asked as he stood before James. His armor was unlike James had ever seen a combination of what looked like a layered undercoat of interweaving coils and large bulk yet angular plates that formed most of the defensive layering besides the armor's kinetic barrier. The interesting thing about the plates however was that they were adjustable for the mission, the plates could be rearranged to a light confutation where some larger plates were removed and the remainder joined closer together forming a light yet formidable barrier for the wearer. The heavy armor configuration had the plates fold up on one another forming larger defensive points on body but leaving larger gaps between the plates. For the exercise at the moment the legionnaire had chosen to go with the light configuration allowing for better movement and control over heavier defense.

"What's up Bacek?" James asked as slung his rifle onto the back of his suit, hearing the slight whizzing of tiny motors as the gun compacted itself.

"I was thinking that maybe you should be Bravo lead this time around." He gauged James facial response before continuing. "You were a lieutenant for however long Fields, you've got more experience being a leader, I'm better off under someone's command." James couldn't read any turian by facial expression, he doubted anyone could. But for a split he thought he could see a bit of remorse in the alien's expression though it was hard to tell. Bacek hadn't really been forth coming besides the initial introductions but he'd never appeared to be anything less than a model soldier.

"Bacek I was a lieutenant on a do nothing mission and I failed at that," he realized just how angry he'd spoken the words and then toned his voice down a bit. What makes you think I'll do any better here?" he finished trying to make sure he didn't bark out the words with too much frustration.

"Because you kept your cool during that urban siege mission yesterday when everyone else just froze up, not even Arterius could figure something out when the mortar started pounding us. You remained in control and got us back to thinking like a military unit, not some mindless rable." The turian issued back at James.

Yesterday's mission had taken its toll on a lot of the squads not just the seventh. The mission was a code triple red simulation. Code Triple Red was a simple form to say you, your team and your entire mission is botched. The three codes sand for simple explanations. 'Primary mission objectives failed, No reinforcements or evacuation available, take down as many with you as you can. No soldier easily took the code but James had seen it before and survived it. As everyone started mulling over their options of a final hurrah James had gotten the group under control telling them you're only defeated if you accept it. Just before the first wave James ordered them into firing positions urging the squad to conserve their ammo as best possible and maintain cooperative firing lanes for each pair of recruits.

The mission was the final stage of a simulated campaign that had started in the early mourning hours and no squad had prepared nearly enough ammunition for the fourteen hour tri mission. Unified from the marines shouts and orders the team managed to hold off the enemy for three hours beating the next best team by a margin of two. And then the mortar fire had fallen. The exposed squad immediately suffered from the unexpected attack, Sol'kahf took a round to the face that would have sheared off his head had it been real. Nina and Joavn had suffered heavy burns from the first barrage as well putting the squad down to a five man group once the final rush commenced. The simulated attackers came with renewed vigor, concentrated more than ever to win back their territory from the Seventh. But this time despite their losses the squad was more than ready to meet them. They shouted harsh warcrys from their respective cultures and then rushed forward to meet their enemy. Their weapons spent they clubbed away at their foes even using their standard issue combat knifes to bring down their enemies. Of course eventually every squad member was eliminated ending with James and Tholam who'd procured some enemy grenades to go down as the general would later say 'Quite Spectacularly.' Releasing the charges while surrounded by the enemy it was estimated the two took out over 30 close knit attackers in their final attack. The drill instructors hadn't applauded or cheered but they had congratulated the squad on the longest life span of the entire regiment surviving a total of 6 and a half hours of continuous and unrelenting assault by the enemy.

At the evaluation briefing care of the general's XOs however the action would have different results. The team lead for the mission had been Vulcrius and the executive officers hit them hard for not obeying his strict line of command saying that in any action a leader must be swift and worthy and make sure there is no dissention of orders. Bacek had urged them that James had done the right thing by effectively taking over, saying that under his own leadership the team would have failed much earlier due to his inaction. But the pair of officers were not incline to listen to him saying that had it been a real situation and if they'd managed to survive James would have been brought up for gross insubordination under fire. The marine flatly countered by saying he wouldn't have left any witnesses to say that he had disobeyed orders. At this the XOs were done with the Seventh but not quite with Fields. They ordered him to spend the night outside the fort in the freezing wasteland of Klentol. Even with a hazmat suit the temperatures became extremely uncomfortable but the marine had not had to go it alone. Sol'kahf, Nina and Tholam had joined him for the night under the stars making the experience a little more enjoyable while Bacek and the rest had opted to stay in the warm confines of the base while their squad mates froze to death till mourning.

When the group had returned to the camp Bacek was surprised to see what good spirits they were in. he later learned they'd spend the time trying to learn the finer points of Broulian martial arts within the bulky hazmat suits. The scene had been quite comical Tholam noted as the slow moving beings tried to execute a variety of precise movements, but the suits articulation repeatedly threw them off and they would be caught off balance and fall to the ground laughing. After hearing how good the trip had ended up being Bacek cursed himself for not sticking with his team. It was what the general routinely drilled them on whenever they had instruction with him, that they had to learn to act as one, to think and judge as a sole person not individuals. From then on Bacek had made numerous attempts to 'hang out' as he'd heard a human put it with the smaller group as often as he could. Of course he'd not had a chance to seeing as the general seemed to think as long as power ran in the fort than the day was not done and had continued their simulations well into the seventeenth hour of the day after the siege mission.

James looked at the turian wondering for a second if he had the right idea. James had felt almost at home giving out the orders during the siege but that was more of a spur of the moment kind of thing. He'd felt compelled not just to sit back and let controllers put the squad down like some farm animal. He knew that together if they kept their guard up, the squad could make a serious dent in the attacker's numbers for however long. But this was different. In charge of Bravo team James would in complete command and would need to be relied on if some part of the mission went south which he knew was more likely then not. Finaly after due consideration of his choice he turned back to the turian.

"Alright Bacek, I'll take over Bravo. We better go let Tholam know, its better he knows now than a few minutes into the op.


	13. Siege and Sabotage

**Thanks for the Reviews by PaCha, mark twenty, and Weyland. Hope you enjoy the newest exploits of James and the Cohort. Any continued comments would be appreciated and any mission ideas messaged directly to me would be more than welcome.**

James checked the harness rig for the third time in ten minutes, giving a tough pull to the main cable and then reclasping the safety catch he finaly decided their were no imperfections in the gear. A major factor in the operation rested on Bravo team's insertion and being able to quickly release the harness and begin fighting was essential. With the final gear check he turned on the squad communications channel.

"This is Bravo one to squad. Numbers only from here check in." he ordered as he glanced to the bottom of the floor under the skylight. There were two guards patrolling the immediate area but his suits motion sensors told him that at least four more were in close proximity. As he made sure all his weapons were secure the team checked in.

"Bravo Two ready and able," Bacek announced as ran a final check on his assault rifle.

"Bravo Three here, awaiting your lead chief." Sol'kahf's slow calm voice spoke as he went through a few jabs and punches making sure his muscles were ready for the work ahead.

"Bravo Four reporting," Nina said as she turned off her omni tool's scanner. James detected no worry in her voice but he knew she must have some anticipation. On all the previous runs she'd been assigned to the main assault team where the enemy had always been in front of her. In the skylight insertion, the team would be lucky if enemies only came through three of the five entry points, but James and the other two Bravo veterans had grown used to it and had learned to cover each other extensively making sure someone's field of view always covered at least two entry points.

James' thoughts were interrupted by an explosion not that far away from their position. 'Alpha just made their entrance.' Using the long range coms this close to the enemy would easily bring attention down on the skylight so they had to operate on radio silence until they made their insertion. The timing of the operation was critical and the explosion was the main activator. James quickly punched his time piece's countdown a second after he heard the sound. The alarm was calibrated with the time loss between when the explosion actually happened and when the squad heard it. There was no room for error this time. As ready as they'd ever be, he motioned Bravo squad into position.

As silently as their armored suits allowed, the group got into position. James heard the quiet clicks as each team member locked onto their harness and prepared for the drop. The chief looked at his time piece. '.40 units. He got a nod from each team member and then took one more glance down. Still only two guards, good start. He heard his time piece beep in a low rhythm and he jumped down to the skylight.

As James' armored boots crashed through the glass once again, he felt his adrenaline start pumping up as the two sentries immediately burst into action but Bacek and James had it handled. Expertly placed automatic fire immediately brought down the first pair of guards as the marine's foot soles hit the ground. The turian legionary immediately landed next and set up at the east corner while James set up on the southern western point of the room. Nina and Sol'kahf arrived seconds later as another group of guards entered the room.

James rolled under the incoming barrage of fire and brought up his shotgun to bear on the first group of enemies. He fired a storm of mass accelerated rounds into the heavily armed mercenaries. The shells pierced the first enemy easily enough and the force knocked the other off its feet. Checking to see the other guards were down, the marine stood up and brought his weapon to bear on the remaining guard. As he lined up the enemy he heard a slight whizzing sound to the outside of the doorway. James saw the grenade a second before he propelled himself back away from the doorway. The explosion lifted James off his feet and hurtling backwards into Sol'kahf. With a grunt the marine crashed into the larger being and then looked back at the doorway. Two turian guards raced in and immediately primed their weapons. They would have finished off Bravo but a long knife suddenly appeared embedded in one of the enemies' skulls causing the guard to fall back against his partner as the turian went into its death throws. The momentary distraction allowed Bacek and Nina to easily finish off the last guard. James turned back to Sol'kahf whose outstretched hand told him the entire story. 'I really should ask him about some of those knife when I get the chance.' James put the thought away to remember another time and then helped up the large alien.

Finaly having a point of rest James brought up his helmet com. "Alpha lead this is Bravo I need a sitrep?" he spoke into the chin mike as he brought up his assault rifle to cover the hallway. All the members of Bravo got their gear together and prepared to move out.

"Roger that Bravo one, we've secured the first hallway and are ready to move along the left flank. Radio back when you're in position." Tholam alerted James as he led his team into the hallway adjacent to the skylight insertion point. Once they came to the first intersection James and Bacek took positions to cover the left and right entrances and paused momentarily as Bacek used his Omni Tool to disable the thermal sensors in the doorways making sure the team could progress unhindered. After they secured the sensor Nina and Sol'kahf pushed forward. Soon enough the advance pair made it to the final T section and held their place. Nina got to work on the second group of sensors as James and Bacek left their previous post. Keeping his guard up James and Bacek moved along the wall up to where Nina was in place. Once they made sure no enemies were in sight James clicked his mike once sending a signal to Alpha. They were in place.

"Good work Bravo we're holding it together over here. We've encountered a whole lot more resistance than before but we've made it unscathed so far. We'll push forward until we reach Point Five. If anything is gonna happen it will happen there. Alpha out." James looked ahead to where the corridor widened a bit. It was the ideal place for an ambush, cover was plentiful and the team had only one way in or out of the area. The marine etched his way closer to the doorway and then turned back to Sol'kahf.

"Two and Four, arm shotguns and clear, watch the left side. Three and I will watch the right side. Be ready for anything. Move out." The four soldiers silently entered the corridor keeping their weapons trained on the two exits to the room. Bacek turned his visored helmet slightly to the right waiting for James' acknowledgement. James brought two fingers up to his faceplate and then motioned to the door. Bacek and Nina advanced cautiously, their crouched shadows reflecting on the metallic walls. As the two commandoes got into position something caught James' eye. Set into the door framed was another set of thermal sensors.

"Two hold up, you've got another thermal trap at that doorway." Nina nodded and then brought up her Omni tool once more. As she brought up the tool to the device James heard a light beep as the device went down. He glanced at the doorway and then heard a clink somewhere behind him. He immediately turned to the source and then saw the silver disk on the ground directly behind them.

"Grenade!" he yelled as the explosive activated. The device must have had a secondary upgrade on it because just as the force hit the team they also were blinded by the brilliant light of a flashbang. Landing on his back James just heard approaching footsteps. He brought up his rifle and fired blindly in the direction hoping he would hit something. He heard a cry of pain and a thud on the floor before his vision cleared a bit. He felt an instant jab of pain as enemy fire pierced through his kinetic sheilds. The marine grunted in pain as he tried to clear the remainder of his vision. Six silhouettes had entered the room weapons drawn. He saw Nina slumped against the right wall and Bacek still set against his cover. The turian was trying to shake the remnants of his own blindness but he seemed alright besides that. He couldn't see Sol'kahf but it was his own skin he was worried about. He dove to the right taking the brunt of the follow up fire with his kinetic barriers.

While James got to cover he suddenly heard a loud roar and the sound of something metal connecting with armor plating. He looked up to see Sol'kahf's massive form in the middle of the enemy formations. The slick furred alien crashed his fists into the helmet of the enemy closest. The broulian's mighty fists pummeled the enemy away and then unsheathed another dagger from his suit belt. He blocked an attack from another guard and then slashed the neck of another. His vision finaly clear James brought up his shotgun and opened fire. Sol'kahf ducked low and kicked out the legs of another soldier. With Sol'kahf's devastating attack and the combined firepower of Bacek and  
James the team managed to clear up the remaining enemy forces. The marine looked up to see an open air vent. He figured the space would just be able to allow him inside but the broulian had somehow managed squeeze himself into it and then drop back down as the enemy moved back into the room.

Sol'kahf rose up from the ground and then nodded to his team mates, in each hand he held an obsidian blade."Good shots my friends, I think I could have handled a few more." He whirled the ancient blade artistically and then sheathed it. James heard a slight groan and saw Nina lying near the doorway.

James grinned to his compatriot, and then turned his attention to Nina. "Damn grenade got my kinetics, sorry chief." She spoke calmly trying to move her muscles. Moving over to her, James found that her armor had gone into the safe mood effectively labeling her as dead for the simulation. Bringing up his helmets diagnostic HUD, it showed that had it been a real thing Nina would have suffered major wounds from the grenade and then the ensuing firefight, but she would have still been alive. He brought up his helmet com once more. "Not your fault Collins I should have figured the Spectres would work up something new for us." She nodded towards him as James brought up the com channel once more.

"Alpha this is Bravo, my tech is in critical, what's your sitrep?" James asked as he propped up Nina. Sol'kahf and Bacek took up positions to cover the two and the doorway. James finaly got a response from Tholam.

"Roger that Bravo, enemy caught us in the blind a few minutes ago. Made a full rush on our position, Cahleura and I managed to get to cover in time but we lost Joavn and Ledran, turian fool hasn't stop cursing about it. We're still in this Fields; we haven't gone this far to lose." James made sure the two hallways were clear again and then turned back to his team. None of them were ready to call it quits and he knew if they made it to the final area they'd secure victory and be done with the rotten exercise.

"We're ready when you are Alpha, we're down our tech support but they know where we are. No sense hiding now. We'll continue through the facility and rendezvous at the power generators, call us when you're in position. Alpha out." Tholam finished as James got his squad mates ready to go. He turned to Nina, technically she was out of game but they might need her skills ahead at the final barrier. He bent down to where Nina still lay. "Bad new Nina, gonna have to drag you along." Nina turned up to him with a sly smile.

"How do you intend to do that chief?" James turned back to Sol'kahf, "Feel like a workout Three?" Nina swiftly punched him in the shoulder.

"Hey!" she snarled at him. James grinned slightly and then stood up.

"Sol'kahf's the only one who can carry you and shoot." Nina slowly nodded and then James and the broulian got her to her feet. "Besides, wouldn't want you carrying me around anyhow. You might throw me again. Thanks Sol'kahf." The broulian grabbed her thin frame and then slung her over his right shoulder.

"No problem Nina, just the same we're the rear guard now. Any enemies get to shoot at Bacek and James before they hit us." The broulian replied as he brought up his shotgun in his right hand making sure to balance Nina as well.

"Cut the chatter team, we gotta move." James said as the marine and Bacek took point. Moving swiftly now they almost jogged through the base corridor. They met no resistance and then finaly arrived at their destination. The large room that held the generator had always been a major pain to them but with an almost full team James knew they could make it. Sol'kahf gently lowered Nina to the ground allowing her to get to work on the door controls. A click on James' ear piece told him that Alpha team was in position and securing their door situation.

Bacek moved between Sol'kahf and James ready to clear the door as soon as it opened. Nina turned to James and nodded, signaling she was ready to open on his command. Once more James brought up his communications link. "Alpha, Bravo is in position."

It took a second for Tholam to reply. "Very good Bravo, you'll breach first and get their attention. Soon as the guns start firing we'll hit em with everything we got. Good luck Chief." The salarian replied a tinge of worry in his voice as he finished the transmission. James made sure his fire team was ready and after receiving their acknowledgements he turned back to Nina. "Do it."

The door sailed open exposing a group of four armored Krogan, all armed to the teeth standing guard in the large generator room. Bravo's saving grace was the fact that only one of them had its weapons at the ready. Spurned on a bit by his hatred for the krogan that'd escaped him aboard the _Tranquil_ James charged forward with Bacek right in his wake. James roared over the sound of weapons fire as he brought all his fire to bear on the alerted krogan and then quickly returning to the cover of some cooling machines as Bacek and Sol'kahf continued with their attacks. Rapid fire peppered the massive beast as his brethren finaly registered the threat. One with gleaming silver and black armor, most likely the leader immediately bounded into action. He unslung his large shotgun and fired burst off in James' direction. Making sure not to expose even the smallest part of his helmet James kept his body collapsed against the steel machines at his back. When he heard the leader's weapon overheat he quickly turned around firing up his assault rifle once more. Concentrate with Bacek's fire they broke the lead krogan's kinetic barriers and began to see dinks and scratches appear on his protective armor. The krogan turned back into cover but his three brothers moved forward towards Bravo's position.

"Sol'kahf, move back on the right and cover the flank!" James yelled and then activated his helmet com. "Alpha breach now!" he shouted into the mike as fire ripped through the steel pistons that had served as the marine's cover. Now exposed to another barrage James darted for the nearest cover, a pile of old shipping crates. As he bounded across the gap weapons fire tore into his leg sending him crashing him down. The armored suits simulation program could discharge electrical currents to register the correct amount of pain to the wearer for training purposes, but James had never experienced as much in previous exercises.

Today however he yelled in agony as the pain ensued and his right leg's armor locked it down effectively cutting it off from his control. As he slumped down against the crate he heard shotgun fire ripping into the other side and new it was only a matter of time before his cover would erupt into hundreds of small pieces. He didn't know where he could crawl to when that happened, but he knew even if he went down, there was still a chance Sol'kahf and Bacek could finish the job. He brought up his HUD again and scanned for his squad mates and found they were both huddled against cover not to far from him. The enemy signatures the three that remained were cautiously advancing in their position moving from cover to cover while the rearguard continuously fired to keep the oppositions head down. They were completely ignoring him and he was in the perfect position to flank them.

Willing his body to ignore the pain he used his rifle to prop himself up and then searched for his targets. Sure enough he spotted the three lumbering aliens but something caught his attention. The leader was nowhere to be seen and James knew they hadn't brought him down in the initial fight. He started looking for a krogan corpse when he felt the nudge of a gun barrel jut into his back. "Game over bub." Then James' entire vision went dark.

As the lights failed an explosion ripped violently through the room lifting the krogan and James off their feet. The human landed with a grunt as his body hit the ground hard. As the lights turned on he found himself staring right into the armored visor of the krogan leader. Quickly grabbing the krogan's discarded shotgun James whirled around to face the enemy. As he lined up his shot he saw a weird smile crossing the armored alien's maw. A blue pulsating energy glowed around the krogan's hand and before James could react the leader threw forth its hand. The ball of energy raced forward and hit James on the right side spinning him around and then plastering the marine to the wall behind him. As pushed himself from the wall he saw Tholam and Cahleura out of the corner of his eye. The salarian threw a grenade at the trio of krogans while the asari huntress stormed toward the krogan leader. The same shimmering blue energy swirled around Cahleura as she brought her right arm towards the krogan leader.

The massive alien bellowed with rage as the asari's biotic attack sent him careening back and away from James. The human once again managed to prop himself up but this time his leg wouldn't budge, but he was able to get a glimpse of the generator room.. With Tholam's help Sol'kahf and Bacek cleaned up the three out maneuvered krogan warriors while Cahleura dealt a final blast to the krogan leader. The alien let out a cry of pain as the huntress repeatedly fired on him till he moved no further. Satisfied her work was done the asari addressed her fallen squad mate.

"Good work getting their attention Fields." Her cool almost silky voice said to him as she extended a hand down to him. James took the help and eased himself back up once more using his rifle to balance himself.

"We didn't want to soften em up too much for you two." He said slyly as he looked around. Sol'kahf and Bacek were nursing small wounds to their armor while Tholam moved over to the generator. After placing a charge on the large humming machine and setting the timer for a three minute countdown he brought up his com unit.

"Control this is Alpha team mission accomplished I say again mission accomplished." The salarian ordered as he moved to James and Cahleura. As he moved the walls seemed to peal away giving way to the metallic walls that made up a large portion of the training complex. The holographic projectors here were so advanced the transition almost caught James off guard. Once the lights in the training course returned to their normal heights control returned to his leg and he stood properly thanking Cahleura as she released her helping hand. Through the doorway Nina emerged offering congratulations to her squad mates. They'd finaly beaten it but the loss of Arterius and Joavn still bothered him, not so much Arterius though. Had this been the real thing they'd have lost two brothers as well as having a critical condition in tow for the exit of the mission which would have further complicated things. Still they had completed the mission and he couldn't be happier. He suddenly noticed Tholam approaching him with an outstretched arm.

"Congratulations Fields, without your team, me and Cahleura would have never managed to hit them at the end. I should have been suspecting the ambush that took out Gerick and Arterius, but I'm glad we made it with as few injuries as we did." The salarian said with an expression that amounted to a grin for his species. James shook his hand in appreciation as their drill instructor and their other team mates appeared next to them.

"Fine good work squad, some of your best yet." Tiberius acknowledged them. "Glad you finaly made it up with the rest of the group; General was threatening to leave us here till we beat the damn thing. Glad you remained cool when you ran into that last hurdle at the end there." Bacek looked to where the krogan ghosts had finaly fallen and then turned back to their DI.

"Wasn't expecting a Krogan battlemaster and his cronies, who came up with that?" he asked unsealing his helmet as he did. For once their drill instructor cracked a small grin.

"Oh you know him Vulcrius, fact is he helped save your our scaly hides a few months ago. Name's Garrus Vikarian, a turian Spectre, and he is angry as hell you beat his krogan blitz." The older turian laughed.

During their downtime back to the Citadel the recruits enjoyed a good deal of luxury along the trip. They had gone to Klentol in a stuffy crate of a ship, but now returning they had boarded a sleek Asari warship called the _Daunting Fate_. There the recruits enjoyed a large assortment of exquisite food articles a lavish arrangement of lounging furniture. In the final count, 96 recruits had made the cut. The numbers weren't high but they weren't low, and each individual had proved their ability that the General was more than happy with the pass fail ratio. The volus continued to gaze out the one way glass and observed the assortment of beings celebrating before him. All fine individuals, from every different race and creed, all coming together under one banner. The seasoned warrior nodded solemnly and then turned to his executive officers.

"Thoughts?" the smaller alien asked to his compatriots. The first to respond was the grey skinned turian. The avian descendent had one long jagged scar across his face, a constant reminder of the value of patience in any military action. His name was Craitus Ecktar, one of the greatest Turian generals to date as well as serving as a Council Spectre for the last quarter of his life. Now a veteran of hundreds of campaigns, the retired general had opted to give his knowledge to the next generation of soldiers.

"They are all interesting and unique fighters, it will be interesting to see them in action. As you say General, 'Training does not make a soldier, war makes a soldier.' I'm one to take your word on it for this bunch. My reports do state a number of squads that still haven't gone into complete cohesion but I believe this will end soon enough." The grey turian noted before turning to his human partner.

"I agree with Craitus, real combat experience will truly test their merit. I'm sure the Council will have a healthy dose of operations for us soon enough. I'll be eager to see how this regiment pays out." The human had signs of Arabic and Asian ethnic descent but was as weathered as his turian counterpart. Edrian Uiragoyna had served under the systems alliance banner for going on 45 years since leaving boot camp back on Earth. He was a soldier through and through, accomplishing countless missions for the good of humanity. Some had said that he was prime candidate for the first human Spectre well before Commander Shepard rose to the position, but Alliance Command had kept the rising colonel under their watch eliminating him from the candidacy. A few years later he had been contacted by Councilor Anderson to help coordinate the various offices of the JTOP office. Now as an executive officer of the newest JTOP regiment he continued to fight and protect the law of the galaxy.

"I'm sure there's a whole list of problems we'll have to look forward to once we get back to the Citadel. But for now we should enjoy the peace we have.' He turned to his XOs. "Go out mingle," he held up a glass to them. "Tonight we dine, tomorrow we fight."

James brought the tray of drinks back to his squad mates. "Cheers to the mighty Seventh." He celebrated for the first time in he didn't know how long. His friends each grabbed one of the liquor filled glasses and drank to their victory. Sol'kahf's large hand fumbled slightly with his glass spilling a little across his wiry goatee. Amused he let out a mellow laugh in which his squad mates joined in on. James sat beside Nina and took in the people around him. In the few weeks that they'd trained aboard the Citadel and then at the complex in Klentol, they'd all grown to understand each other's strengths and weakness and how to bolster their skills as a solitary unit. James still maintained a distance between Arterius but neither he nor the turian were making an attempt to become closer friends but in a firefight they respected the other's skills.

The General had shown the entire regiment's final scores before they left Klentol. The Seventh hadn't been the best but they'd been among the top five squads of the entire regiment, and that was cause for enjoyment. James knew soon enough they'd have little time to relax; the rumors were plentiful each with their own tale of exactly what they'd be running into when they started working directly under the Council. But for now it was a time to relax, enjoy their accomplishments, the future would come soon enough. He raised his glass to the squad and then drank deeply savoring the site.


	14. Beloraud

**Citadel**

**Office of Joint Tactics and Operations**

**10 Hour 32 Units. Date unspecified for Black Ops purposes.**

"**Graduation"**

James savored the moment his name was called. Clad in a dark grey dress uniform with a black line traveling from the collar all the way down his right side to his polished boot, he made his way across the stage to where the general stood. Clad in his own style of the same uniform the general presented him with a new rank badge. The badge was composed of silver metal and it depicted a single bar crisscrossed by two swords, and set to the backdrop of the main motif was a well varnished symbol of the office. It was the symbol for a Brevet Captain, one above the standard rank once initiated as a true member of JTOP. As James put it in place he snapped a sharp salute to the volus who returned it just as fast. As the general lowered his hand and named the next graduate James left the stage and returned to his seat. Joavn and Cahleura were the closest team members to James and he let loose a grin to both as he took his seat. After the final simulation at the Klentol facility, Tiberius had asked the squad to choose their squad leader. The vote had been unanimous save for Arterius but eventually even he'd thrown in his support. James had been made the seventh's squad leader. He was still getting used to the new responsibilities but he felt in time he'd grow to prove that he was the right choice. He finaly brought his attention back to where he was. After almost a half hour later, the ceremony was over and they had made it.

"So they've proved themselves to your standards General?" Councilor Anderson solemnly asked to the general and his executive officers. The general turned back to the human council member.

"No amount of training can prepare someone for what happens out there Councilor. I'm sure you understand how combat changes soldiers." The volus asked as he glanced back toward his graduate class. Every last one of them had proven themselves as superior to the rank and file. Elite soldiers at the personal command of the Council, ready venture forth and fight the rising evil.

"Only too well General, Commander did you want to add anything?" he looked to the holographic projection of humanities first Spectre.

"The galaxy is becoming a much darker place these days General. You sure your 'Cohort' will be up to the tasks ahead." Shepard continued as the orange hued hologram flickered a bit. Hetui had no idea where the human Spectre had ended up since after the attack on the Citadel, he doubted even the council knew the full extent of Shepard's activities of late but the general knew the Spectre was hard at work keeping peace among the stars.

"Commander I have full faith that my regiment will become one of the greatest tools to the council since the formation of the Spectres. They'll prove their worth Commander, you have my word on that." The general stated.

"Having men and women like your troops at the council's disposal will greatly aid us in the coming months General I don't doubt their merit, I just hope the rest of the galaxy is ready when the time comes. Shepard out." The image flickered once more and than finaly ceased and the Commander disappeared.

"I have matters to attend to." Anderson gave a stiff salute to Hetui. "General let me know if you need anything else." The volus returned the salute and then returned to watching the celebrating officers. 'Yes' they were ready, but their enemy would be just as prepared. The Cohort was going to face challenges on a galactic scale, they had to be ready.

The ceremony had a small crowd of beings gathered, mainly close family and friends. James was glad to see Nina had managed to find her family, and wondered who else from his squad had found relatives. He saw Sol'kahf conversing with fellow broulians and Tholam exchanging a few words with some C-Sec officers, but noticed Cahleura simply exchanging words with Bacek. The turian had told James earlier that most of his family lived in some of the harder to reach turian colonies but James was surprised no one had come to congratulate Cahleura. Grabbing a few glasses from a tray he moved past a group of closely huddled turians and made it to his squad mates.

"Never drink alone." He spoke softly as they turned to greet him. Bacek quickly grabbed one of the glasses but Cahleura moved slowly and deliberately. She was still reserved for the most part, rarely joining the others in the squad while on break during training and it seemed she only had little if any chats with the red skinned turian. Today it seemed she wished to share a little with the marine.

"That a human theory Fields?" she asked quickly before taking a long sip of the wine. Taking a gulp of his drink, he smiled back at the blue skinned asari.

"No but we use it enough that it very well could be, figured you two might want some company." James replied to Cahleura as he glanced back to Nina as she discussed something with her relatives.

"You're not expecting any family James, figured you had someone back home." Bacek asked as he shifted uncomfortably in his dress uniform.

"Nah never knew my parents. Few friends I made at the academy at Arcturus are too busy on assignment. Don't mind though, made a few new friends in this group." He patted his hand on the turian's shoulder as Nina arrived.

"Hey Fields my padre wants to have a word with you, think he's a bit angry at the way you've been treating a certain daughter of his." She said mischievously to the marine. Locking her arm around his she turned to Cahleura and Bacek. "Mind if I steal him for a second."

"Be our guest." The turian said. James shot him an angry glance before putting his glass on the tray of a passing waiter.

"You know, you throw a girl across the vacuum of space once and you're paying it for the rest of your life. Remember that Bacek." James said as Nina ushered him away from Bacek and Cahleura.

Before James had to face the inevitable a grim voice filled the amphitheater where it had all started. "All JTOP officers report to your duty stations immediately, we have an urgent assignment that requires your presence." Soon enough James recognized the voice as the General's. Nina sighed as she had to settle for a few quick hugs before rejoining James as he led her back to the stadium.

"Don't think you're getting out of the fryer yet James, next time we make it back to Earth you're gonna have to deal with it sooner or later." Nina retorted with a small smile as they entered the training stadium. There the remainder of the regiment slowly started to trickle in. "Tem hut!" the drill instructors ordered. In one fluid movement the recruits instantly came to attention. A few seconds later the general appeared again.

"Sorry to cut the celebration short gents, call came in a few minutes ago and, to put it frankly you should watch the transmission." General Hetui finished as a large projection appeared just under the podium. The image that flashed on the screen showed a sea filled worlds dotted with a small group of island continent. Before the image changed a newscaster's voice filled the area.

"If a stunning move the ruling family of Beloraud has ended all trade agreements with the Citadel early this mourning. Though not a chief agricultural world, Beloraud is responsible for 25 of its sector's food supplies and is the headquarters to the Stapali Corporation, who is rumored to have some connection to the ruling family. The pressing issue however is the 70 population of the planet that is made up of Zetrians, immigrant workers to the planet who have now been forced into complete servitude with the dismissal of all basic workmen's rights that had been guaranteed under the Citadel trade agreements. The Zetrians, who only recently came to light by an asari scout ship less than a millennium ago, are crying out for immediate action to help their fellow brothers. Their has been no official comment by a council representative but with Beloraud as close as it is to the Terminus systems it seems unlikely that no actions will be taken. Rumors are already circulating of a Citadel ambassador preparing to open negotiations with the ruling council but no official comment has been made as well." The newscaster announced as the report finished. The general signaled to someone and the image ceased to exist.

"As you heard no official comment has been given, but the council has asked JTOP Command to write up some plans for an action to secure the planet's production facilities and I've been told I need to assemble a task force for departure to Beloraud within a day." Hetui turned to his turian aid that brought him a small datapad. He reviewed the information with a quick glance and then returned his attention to the regiment.

"Officer Ecktar just gave me your performance evaluations on planetary insurgency tactics and he's selected four squads for a possible mission. 3rd 7th 13th 28th squad leaders report to my office in 15 units. The rest of you may return to the celebration." The volus finished and left the podium.

Soon enough James made his way to general's office and met the three other squad leaders. Joining him was Marhkis Troaviel, Alise O'Kreamer, and Gamroin Ivizzes. O'Kreamer was the only other human squad leader in the regiment while Troaviel was a hard boiled turian, and Ivizzes was the loudest krogan that James had ever heard of. Hetui appeared almost just as James sat down.

"Thanks for coming so soon captains, in the time between when I called the regiment together and now, there have been some new developments. We've gotten some good intel from credible sources planetside that there's something else going on down there. For centuries the ruling family has always been close to the council, nothing like this has ever happened. Our contact on the planet told us that they figure someone is pulling strings behind the Stapali Corporation. The corporation has always tried to keep a tight control on the food production of the sector, but breaking trade agreements with the Citadel isn't something even stupid corporations do easily." The General finished and then brought up a new display to the squad leaders.

A pentagonal structure appeared on the office's main monitor. The building was divided into multiple sections; each with a list attached describing everything from specifications, functions, and guard details. With over a twenty floors the building contained around 4,000 armed and trained guard personnel ranging from company security to mercenaries for hire according to the information.

"Not our target thankfully, this is the Stapali Corporation Headquarters, within 5 minutes of all the majority of food processing centers on the planet. With a standing army able to jump to any alert in the major areas there's no way we can launch a full frontal attack of any kind against them would be suicidal."

"You said something about insurrection General?" Ivizzes grumbled as his hellish eyes maneuvered quickly scanning the display.

"Yes, the zetrians are the key here, they outnumber the corporation's forces by three to one but the manner the corporation is keeping them in is destroying their will making more and more of them into useless drones willing to do nothing except work the fields. The key is a zetrian named Masef; he left the zetrian homeworld to become a merc and toured the stars eventually ending up on Beloraud. He created a group of resistance cells throughout the planet but was eventually captured by Stapali forces a few years ago. They didn't kill him for fear of shattering stability with the workforce, but hey put him in a so called political prison with any other dissidents." The general rapidly typed in a few buttons on his counsel.

A picture appeared replacing structural diagram. The new image showed what James assumed was Masef. Before he'd heard the report he'd never even heard of zetrians, let alone seen one. The species appeared to be bipedal as many of the Citadel species were. The image they had showed a tall being with short green and gray fur. They reminded James of humans, save for the fur but they had a series of horns that dotted both their chin jaw and hands. Masef had the hair on his head grown out substantially; James cataloged the characteristic for once they got groundside.

"We don't have any mission parameters at this time. That I'm leaving up to you. All of you know your teams and what your strengths are. I leave it to you four to combine all your tactical assets and come up with a game plan. Get me one unified approach within 20 hours. Dismissed."

The next day in the JTOP briefing room, 32 commandoes sat in an assortment of dark grey lounge chairs and couches. Each squad leader stood at a large table in the center of the room. The entire room itself was bland and low lit but the individuals assembled contained all the unique looks needed. All commandoes were in their green uniforms and seemed just a little bit on edge over their first assignment.

The hiss of a door opening brought the group's focus on the general and his aides as they entered the briefing room. "Glad to see you all here, give me the run down captains." Itrad ordered as he took his own seat.

"Well general the plan is simple enough, it requires a bit of a deft touch but also the possibility of a hammer strike." Troaviel said as he activated the room's main projector. The turian captain's entire skin was a midnight blue while two white stripes soared all the way from the tip of his head, through his eyes and down into his armor's collar. Among scuttlebutt his unit had been named the Troaviel Terror and the squad had taken a liking to the moniker. They'd excelled at almost every kind of sortie primarily with recon and stealth making them an ideal group for the mission.

"Operation goes under the code name of Abolitionary Rise. Part one insertion. The 3rd and the 13th will arrive posing as a band of mercenaries looking for work. Individually we will stick close to the spaceports gathering all the information we can, as well as finding citizens still loyal to the Citadel to be our eyes and ears. 28th will land at the largest Zetrian settlement via a supply shipment that we will have to track down. Once there they will try to convince the Zetrian populace that forming a resistance against the ruling family and the Stapali Corporations is their only chance to free themselves from the corporation's rule."

"I doubt they're just gonna ally with you the instant that you land." The volus general interjected.

"That's exactly why it's my team going general; I can be very persuasive when it comes to these things." Ivizzes voice lowly grumbled as he clenched his fists. The taller than average krogan towered over everyone else in the room. Most of his dark salmon colored leathery plates had enough dents and bruises to be starship wreckage, while his skin a murky yellow had a pair of eyes that seemed to have as much shock value as the krogan himself. The 28th was the brute force of the operation for sure, excelling at anything to do with hitting the enemy fast and hard and putting him on the ground in the first round. If the plan called for the contingency option, James would be grateful that the krogan and his squad were in the op.

"Part two of the operation is to train a large militia force among zetrians, I've ready the intelligence we have on the zetrians, they're no krogan but if you give me a few weeks with them, I'll be able to make them into something to challenge those Stapali mercs. We'll need a lot of supplies and weaponry so I'll have to see just how much we're budgeted for on this mission." The krogan finished as he crossed his large arms.

"We're hoping they wont need persuasion, but sending Captain Ivizzes to the Zetrians first will give him more time to train those that will join with us, I believe we all saw how well 28th did during the blitz simulation. With him in charge of training the rebels we'll have some of the strongest assets if we choose to apply them." Troaviel continued as he brought up schematics of what James identified as the prison structure that the Stapali Corp was keeping Masef at.

"While the 3rd, the 13th and the 28th work on their information gathering and militia training, 7th squad is tasked with getting the Zetrian resistance leader Masef, out of his lockup. Captain Fields' team will insert into the planet either through a spaceport or at 28th's insertion point. Once they arrive at the facility they will form their own plan of attack since our intelligence on the prison is extremely limited, save for this original blue print made when the colony just started. Any information gathered by 3rd and 13th squad will be relayed to 7th before they make their assault. Once they have a plan ready and able they will give a go code to the other three captains who will cause as much havoc as possible in their respective locations to give Fields and his squad as much time as possible without having the Stapali Corp's national guard bearing down their throat."

"And naturally this attack will give you critical deployment issue, how fast they send reinforcements and the like." Hetui asked as he moved his hand across the bottom of his chin. "Good thinking on that, I hope that all those mercs aren't at complete readiness all the time otherwise this will turn into a massacre."

"Exactly general, once we have Masef, 7th squad will bring him back to the main Zetrian settlement and help him become a resistance leader once more. Captain Ivizzes believes that Masef is not essential to the operation and that he can convince the zetrians to aid us no matter what, but having Masef to unite them should help our teams out tremendously." Troaviel motioned to O'Kreamer to commence the next part of the plan. The human female did not look overly tough but her eyes did have a sense of determination and poise. Her short cropped hair was a brilliant orange further embellishing a true Irish lineage and she favored to speak her mind, even if it meant contradicting superior officers. James had seen her squad's battle recordings and knew having them with the task force would help their chances of pulling off a success improve greatly.

She issued a new command into the projectors console and a host of new images came up. All the images were salarians of different looks and builds but each had the matching skin colorations of a dark grey crown while light green made up the rest of their faces.

"Part three is a final execution maneuver to bring the ruling family back under Citadel law as well as finding out evidence of someone pulling the strings within the Stapali Corporation. Pictured here are the ruling family of Beloraud, Queen Keliah is the newest ruler to the thrown and until recently as you know, kept good relations with the Council. Turns out the current salarian Councilor is actually a far off relation to the queen. Her son Prince Revok is suspected as being the main reason behind the family's recent actions. Revok has always abused his power as a ruler, forcing his and the Stapali's will against not only the Zetrians but the entire populace of the planet. Sadly besides this background information, we have little if any information concerning the main palace or just how far the family is connected with the corporation. Learning as much as we can about them is pertinent to the operation. What we learn about their connections and the family itself on the ground is pivotal to the actions we take once we've secured Masef. Not exactly my best pre briefing but there's so much clouding this mission we wont be able to figure out much until we start assessing the data." As she finished she turned off the projector and the room was silent once more.

"Good work, and this plan has the united support of the other captains?" Hetui asked the commandoes.

"Yes general we are pretty much going blind into this, but we figure this is the best we can do without actually being on the planet." Troaviel told the volus as the briefing finished. "When do we leave general?" the turian asked quickly.

"At least a day, it sounds like we will need to assemble some transit for you and the squads. I'll make the calls. Good luck, I'll call you when I've got your transportation acquired. Squads dismissed."


	15. Delicate Touch

**Beloraud**

**Kiorg Spaceport **

**6 Hour 12 Units. Date unspecified for Black Ops purposes.**

"**The Start"**

Clad in a simple brown trench coat James made his way to spaceport authority. Slung over his shoulder was a large backpack containing his armor and weaponry. Following behind him but not too close the other members of the Seventh continued along their path. A human security guard manned the security booth in front of him and looked up to acknowledge the marine.

"Identification," the guard asked cautiously before taking James' forged papers. "Mr. Pegg please put your bags into the scanner while we process your information." The guard continued as James dropped his gear onto the conveyor belt leading to the scanner.

"Ah another mercenary must be a gold rush or something." The guard remarked.

"Know any people looking for some help?" James asked as he grabbed his gear and brought it onto his back again.

"Well it seems the Stapali Corp is still looking for helping hands. I'd say best bet would be there. Keep a watch on your weapons Pegg, security around doesn't like people abusing the law." The guard finished as he gave back James' identity cards.

James nodded thanks to the officer and then moved past the booth. As he look around taking in the view around him was surprised just how large the structure was. The spaceport alone was a piece of work in itself, its ceiling rising three kilometers above the floor and containing a large number of spaces being able to berth ships ranging from bulk freighters to standard cruisers.

As he stood observing the view someone bumped into him. "Pegg I can't believe it's you. How long it's been." He turned to see Nina's delightful smile and presently replied.

"Yeah about half an hour." He retorted as he saw Sol'kahf and the rest following closely behind. Each was clad in simple garments and some dented and archaic suits of armor. James nodded in their direction and then continued to lead the group out of the spaceport. As they exited they felt the smell of the sea sweep through them.

"Alright how do you intend we find him, I doubt they'll have political prison on their main directories." Arterius quirked in, his attitude had mellowed out from the original hostile stance toward James but the marine still kept his distance.

"Exactly why we sent in 3rd and 13th in early so we're not completely blind," Bacek put in as the group continued down the main street leading away from the spaceport. The squad divided into two groups to cause less attention. Bacek and Cahleura kept close to behind James and Nina as the marine continued along his planned route. The General had trained them early on about keeping tails off and the split into a smaller group was almost reflexive.

James led his commandoes down into the heart of the bustling city. Kiorg had always been the center of activity on the Beloraud even since the first colonization effort. Now at the peak of its power it reminded James of a less crowded London. Everywhere advertising billboards flashed new and fancy merchandise that only faintly appealed to James' eyes. The squad leader eventually led them away from the crowded infrastructure into a quieter part of the capitol. James brought up his Omni-tool and loaded the map provided to him by Troaviel the day before. They were close now; he turned the group down an alleyway and stopped before a small shop.

"Tholam, keep the rest of the squad here and make sure no one follows us." He spoke into the small mike at his collar.

"Roger captain we'll keep an eye out." The salarian responded as the rearguard split up and set up positions at the entrances to the alleyway.

James entered the small store and instantly got a sense of an old mom and pop store back on Earth. All around him unique trinkets were shelved, lying on the floor, or hanging from the ceiling. In they heard a low song being sung but James couldn't make out the words. Soon enough an old human shopkeeper emerged into the area.

"Hello how can I help you?" the old man had a shoulder length beard trimmed rather neatly compared to unkempt hair that disappeared down his back. He had a thick Russian accent but James saw signs of East Asian descent in his overall appearance.

"Name's Smith, friend of mine said you were holding a package for him." James said using the codename Troaviel had briefed him on.

"Ah yes. One moment." The old man moved past the group of commandoes and presently locked the shop as well as pulling down the blinds. He returned to the counter and disappeared for a few seconds before returning with a large envelope. "My name is Chaveninski; your friend helped me out during the last raid, now I can return the favor." He opened the envelope and showed the group its contents.

Spilled out onto the main counter from the parcel were datacards, a host of maps and blueprints all centerinJames shuffled through the assortments of documents marveling at the cache of information.

"How on earth did you get these?" Bacek asked bewildered as he studied some of the blueprints provided. Troaviel had told them to expect a lot of help from this guy but this was more than they expected. Each article had added notes written onto them, describing amounts of weaponry surveillance systems and a myriad other things. The dark red turian's eyes scanned the contents again and again. Even a small amount of this stuff easily blow away all their pre mission plans. Someone had gone to a lot of effort to study up on their target.

"These were the initial breakout plans created by the resistance all those years ago. Structurally the building has not changed but we believe that the guard deployment has with the announcements that the ruling family made a week ago." Chaveninski informed them as he stood proud with his task accomplished. James and his squad looked over all the notes finding specific strategies using maneuvers very closely related to what the squad had planned using the original map provided.

"You said something about we, is the resistance still going?" Nina asked as she observed a few antique miniatures around the room.

"No these were made when the resistance originally wanted to break out political prisoners. After Masef was captured the movement fell apart. The sweeps were every night; many more were picked up and brought to the prison." His previously excited eyes turned grim and he bowed his head. "My wife was one of them; this was over 30 years ago last week." Chaveninski said grimly as he sat down behind the counter.

Cahleura usually calm demeanor turned solemn as she turned to the storeowner. "I'm very sorry for that." The blue asari informed him as she paced the counter.

"It is not your fault, the Stapali rats are the ones responsible for all that has happened to my home. My family was here well before the zetrians arrived to work the farms. Only once the Stapali Corp arrived did not only the colonists but the entire planet started to suffer."

James remembered the impressive spaceport they had just come from. "How do they manage to maintain the city if everyone's gotten beat down so much?"

Chaveninski lifted a single wrinkled finger and smiled. "Ah you are quick Mr. Smith, they keep the workers working by this." The old merchant moved to a weathered cupboard and slipped a rusty key into the archaic lock. He opened the cupboard and withdrew one relatively clean parcel from the space. He gently opened the parcel exposing a block of frozen yellow material that had a horrid scent about it.

"It's called Gernaum, created by the Stapali Corporation shortly after they started bringing in the zetrians. To most it is simply a very foul smelling spice but it was specifically geared to the workforce. When mixed it in with any of their food it will cause the zetrians to go into a sense of renewed vigor basically rendering any sense of hunger null and void. As long as the Stapali continue to keep strict control over this they can manipulate a large portion of their workforce into continuing their employment by controlling what their labor force wants the most." The old man finished as he closed up the parcel and returned it to the cupboard.

"Well that complicates things." Bacek said just about as fast as James realized it as well. As long as the Gemaum existed there'd be no way to get the zetrians on their side. As soon as the corporations got wind of a new resistance movement they'd simply release more of the spice to convince the zetrians that they should stick beside the corporation. He wondered in Troaviel knew this and made a note to bring it up the next time he spoke.

"What also sucks about the place is that its smack dab in the middle of the financial district. Anything starts up down there and you'll have a whole load of Stapali goons rushing down on your ass so you better have a good plan to exit. They also disguised it about a decade ago splashing on a new paint job and making the exterior look like just another office building but there's specific details in the files that will bring you to the right one."

"What about guard detail? How many are usually in the building at any given time?" James asked as his need for more facts kicked in.

"Of that we have little knowledge I'm afraid. My contacts have seen about 8 guys who come and go on a daily basis but they could have some kind of barracks built into the building that could house a lot of personnel."

"Did my friend need me to do anything to help you out? Seems like you wouldn't be the first on the Stapali Corp's holiday greeting list, how do you keep your store." James asked the shopkeeper closed cupboard. Turning back Chaveninski withdrew Stinger pistol from his tattered robe.

"I've been fighting the Stapali and the ruling family for my entire life my friend. It also helps that when the resistance was still around I was a major player and as a bit of a fall back I had explosives hidden in a number of production facilities as well as some parts of the Stapali Corp Headquarters. They don't bother me I don't blow up their factories. Kind of as you say a love hate relationship." The old man joked.

James started packing up the all the maps and diagrams and putting the envelope into his backpack. "Just the same, any of their cronies come by…"

"Heh I know how things go, you were never here. Oh hold on a second." He grabbed a little display covered in layers of dust and gave James a business card. "You need any help you give me a call, I still have some connections throughout the zetrian communities. Good luck." He said as the group moved to the exit.

Exiting the building into shadows of the corporate skyscrapers once more, they regrouped with the remainder of the squad and then pressed on. The sun was falling and the sky lights started blinking on. The emerged back onto the downtown area and located a hotel. Making sure it wasn't the one that 3rd squad was using James led the squad through the double doors. There a salarian manager stood at the receptionist desk.

"Good evening, how can I help you tonight?" James dropped his bag and then leaned onto the counter.

"Yes me and my associates are looking for some lodgings till we get settled in. need something with some room but no classy crap we just need somewhere to crash." James spoke keeping his voice calm.

"Ah more mercenaries, I trust you wont be starting firefights in our corridors." The salarian remarked as he logged in the request into the system.

"Not really my style but I don't think you should get in the big guy's way if he's on a binge." He smirked back to Sol'kahf before continuing. "Other than that we're a reasonable bunch." He handed over his identity cards as well as the credit card provided by the general before they left the Citadel. The manager processed the transaction.

"Very good Mr. Pegg I'll set you up at room 492. Should be large enough to accommodate you and your friends. Have a pleasant evening." The salarian finished as he handed James back his identity chips and credit line.

As the squad entered the room they immediately dropped their baggage to the floor and stretched out after a long day's work. Tholam immediately set up his portable terminals on the large table in the room; while Arterius helped Sol'kahf spread out the weapons to find good concealment for them. It wasn't the best ready room James had been to, but it wasn't far from their target making it an ideal staging location. Rubbing a gloved hand through his short cut hair he started to breath easily. They had made it without any complications. Making sure to keep with protocol he moved over to where Tholam was already working hard at his interfaces.

"Set up a line to 3rd squad." James ordered to the salarian. Tholam rapidly entered in the encryption algorithms and then pointed to where a monitor and headset had been set up.

As James took his seat and put on the mike the image of Troaviel appeared, the turian looked relatively calm most likely just returned from a day of feeling through a variety of contacts that the commandoes were gonna be relying on in the coming battles.

"Good to see you James what can I do for you?" the turian hadn't changed much since James and the seventh had seen him off when the initial insertion group left the Citadel a few days ago.

"Just getting a handle Marhkis, you guys have been calling this home much longer than we have, what's the good word." All files relating to the JTOP actions were classified so James wasn't worried about using names but he did feel it was a good move to not speak directly about their goals.

"Nothing much going on just getting a lot of mumbles and grumbles did you see Uncle Ven today?" the turian waste no time getting down to the details. James double checked that the encryption was running smoothly before continuing.

"Yeah I saw him, good guy still as crazy as I remember. Still think he's all there?" he asked assessing how much trust the squad leader had in their prime contact.

"No doubt about it we go way back, he just acts like that to get attention. But anyway he helped you out with that land acquisition then?" the turian asked the screen showed him reading through a couple of reports on his end.

James nodded as he turned to the envelope beside him. "Sure did, we're gonna go check out the place soon, see if we're getting our money's worth. I'll let you know tomorrow. You tell everyone over there to have a good night." James said as he prepared to close the transmission.

"Will do James, have a good one." Troaviel said as the image collapsed and a blank screen resumed.

The next mourning the group exited the hotel and headed for the financial district each clad in urban wear with only a small amount of concealed weaponry. Today's mission was strictly reconnaissance there'd be enough shooting to come with this operation. Once more they separated into two groups, James leading the first while Tholam brought up the rear element. Life in the capitol was just waking up as well, an assortment of businesspeople already rushing about to get to there offices on time while the small number of street vendors started getting to work on preparing their shops for the day's proceedings.

James was surprised to see a number of zetrians amongst those clad for high class business ventures, he'd assumed the majority of them were just gonna be low class citizens but he found a number of the green furred humanoids amongst those heading for the mighty skyscrapers dotting the city. Eventually James found the street sign marking their entrance into their target area. The squad had seen a lot guards patrolling the area but the financial district's security blew him away. Almost every square foot of the district either had a host of sentries wearing the company uniform, or a small diner that held mercenaries each with a Stapali badge somewhere on their armor.

'They certainly got a nice budget going for their operation.' James thought to himself as he exchanged a glance with one of the mercenary groups. That's a lot of firepower that's gonna be targeted at our 32 commandoes, not the best odds. Eventually they made it to Malvoic Street and James led the group into a small café. As they sat down the rest of the squad passed by them and then stopped at a restaurant just down the street from them.

James brought up the map provided by Chaveninski and laid it across the table making sure to keep a low profile. There were only a few mercenaries in the café but he knew if someone figured they were up to something that they wouldn't last long against all the mercs.

"It's there just in the middle of those buildings." James said tilting his head in the direction of a collection of buildings to the right of the squad. "The only way in is through a few alleyways, the space is limited so we'll have to be careful as we make our way in. We get in a fight in there and it will end badly for us." He brought his hand up to his ear and activated his mike. "Joavn, what you thinking?"

"As we arrived we had lots of eyes making us, it's gonna be a tricky for sure. I think I can get one of those Stapali badges and see what I can find."

"No," Bacek interjected. "If they went through all the trouble disguising the building it's gonna have a specific guard detail. Anyone without proper authorization wondering around is gonna alert them before we ever have the chance."

"What about hacking are way in, Tholam did you find any way to connect from the hotel?" Nina asked as she kept her eyes peeled for trouble.

"No, all their hardware is running on a closed circuit, the only way in would be if I got connected through their hardware on sight, thus defeating the purpose of our reconnaissance." Over the channel James heard the clink of glasses as a waiter brought the second half of the team starters.

"We do this the old fashion way, we find a building elevated above the target, set up a listening post. From it we ascertain what were dealing with against what we have information on." Arterius said over the squad frequency.

James fumbled over the idea for awhile. The tactic was old school thinking but it would allow them a pair of eyes and ears for the operation to get Masef out. "Alright, Tholam, you and Joavn find us a space in one of the office buildings. There has to be to some abandoned rooms somewhere in this city. Use the credit line we got from the General, I'm sure he'd love an office space on a planet he's never heard of before all this."

"Roger that boss, we'll get on it right now." Across the street James saw the salarian and the raggedy looking human separate from the other half of the squad and move away. "We'll call in when we have a location."

James nodded and then looked back at the alleyway leading to the prison. It was hard to see from this distance but the marine thought he saw the shadow of a guard inside the hall way. Again he wished they'd had more intelligence before the operation began but sometimes you had to play the hand you were dealt with.

"Alright while the two of them find us a lookout point we should get the feel about the populace. Sol'kahf and Arterius see if you can find a popular hangout for the mercenaries. The rest of us are gonna go through the crowds; get a feel for the bigger picture. We need to find out if there's anything going on that we could use to our advantage. If anyone sees any of 3rd squad you're to immediately pull off your activities and report it in."

Six hours later the salarian ex cop and the human ex criminal stood watch from the lookout point. The pair had not found any buildings close enough with space open but they had gotten a break. A building just on the exterior ring of financial district was being constructed by the Stapali Corp, it had the perfect vantage point to the prison and it was only a manner of keeping an eye out for exterior surveillance recorders as they made it to the roof.

On their third hour of the stakeout Joavn broke the silence. "They usually this boring?" he asked the salarian who brought down the scope he'd been using.

"You've never been on a stakeout?" Tholam responded as he resumed watching the building.

"I've been targeted by them, other than that no I haven't ever been part of them. Seem like some of the most boring things cops could think up.

"We don't have outside access to the target, Arterius was right this is one of the best ways to gain an edge on the guards inside." The salarian replied in his quick witted voice.

"Than why isn't he up here freezing his scaly ass off? Captain hates him as it is." Joavn replied as he brought the heavy cloak tighter around him.

"The Captain doesn't hate him Arterius came in punched him right in the face at a bar. You wouldn't like a person very much after they did that to you would you?" Tholam responded as he returned to observation.

Joavn started to reply before holding is tongue. The human nodded and then turned his gaze back to the building. The salarian had set up a thermal imaging enhancer and connected it to a relay monitor. Everything Tholam was looking at showed up on the screen but as a thermal image. They had counted a total of 35 thermal signatures not counting prisoners. The thirty five guards were divided between the floors and only two of the floors contained what Tholam had easily designated as prisoners. When the seventh hit the facility they'd have to rely on lightning speed and luck. They had no way to tell which prisoner Masef and they still couldn't figure out a fool proof exit vector.

Suddenly air speeder roared over the pair's head causing Tholam and Joavn to fall prone to avoid attention. As the two brought up their heads they watched as the speeder continued along its course, ending up landing atop the prison facility. As the salarian zoomed in on the rooftop activity he watched as a trio of prisoner was escorted off the speeder and into the facility via a hatch Tholam had missed in his earlier scan.

The prisoners, two zetrians and a salarian were quickly ushered into the complex where soon enough they joined with the other signatures on the relay monitor. As he removed his eye from the scope he turned back to Joavn a smile forming on his white lips.

It took the human a second to realize the alien's intentions. "Absolutely not I'm not gonna go get arrested just to be locked up in the building. Tell me you got something better than that." But as the words left his mouth he turned back to the prison. If they just went in guns blazing they'd bring the whole Stapali Empire down of them even with distractions by the other squads, besides it could be as bad as the time he'd stayed at the Noveria Heights Penitentiary. The human sighed once and then turned to his squad mate "Call the captain,"

Tholam nodded and immediately got to work finding the hotel room's signal filtering out all the other garbage flowing through the channels of the hour.


	16. Breakout

**Beloraud**

**Downtown Kiorg**

**18 Hours 0 Units. Date unspecified for Black Ops purposes. **

**Day Four of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

"**Prisonbreak"**

Joavn marched was brought into the prison with several bruises and a gash across his forehead courtesy of the mercs sent to bring him in. In front of him a turian Stapali Corp security officer brought a report to the front desk.

The officer behind the desk turned up to acknowledge them. "What happened to him?" he said looking in Joavn's direction as he collected the report from the beat cop.

The turian turned back to look at his prisoner. "Started a riot downtown, started trying to get all the zetrians to unite behind him in overthrowing the corporation. Beat up a lot of mercs in the process. Took us nearly an hour to lock him down." The turian said slightly, massaging his jaw.

"Wait he was trying to get the zetrians to rebel? What do you care about the green furs?" The human officer behind the desk asked.

"You Stapali guys make me sick, how can you just throw people's rights away and then keep them under your thumb while reap the benefits." Joavn shot back at him, a salarian officer behind the JTOP agent brought the end of a stun baton across Joavn's legs bringing the human down to the floor.

The Citadel born human fought back a cry of pain and then looked back up to the officer behind the desk as he continued.

"Humph another idealist, lock him away with the rest of the coots." The turian officer turned around and grabbed Joavn by his shoulder and dragged him along.

"Got it, right this way." He ushered Joavn down to the next level of the prison, Joavn made mental notes as they passed the cells. Most of the inmates were zetrians but one in particular caught eye. Masef matched his picture almost exactly save for a somewhat dirtier and homelier than the picture they'd been and provided.

He barely had time to look at his objective before he was pushed once more. He stumbled into his cell turning back just as the guard entered in a key code. With a hiss the doors hydraulics activated and the door slid shut.

"Alright next time Tholam gets to play the pulp." The ex-con said to himself as he scaled the wall with his hand looking for any signs of weaknesses. Making sure that the guard had gone back to his post Joavn reached to the bridge of his mouth and found the tiny mike he'd hidden there. Separating the mike from the ear piece and putting them in their respective areas he made a connection to the hotel room.

Keeping his voice as low as he could, he began relaying his findings. "Captain, Gerick here. I'm in and I saw our target, he's on the same floor as I'm at, just a few doors down. Cant talk much now but you better let me know when you're in position." Residing to heal up after the earlier ordeal, he knew sooner rather than later the rest of his squad would be making the spring.

**0 Hour 32 minutes. **

**Day Five of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

All clad in black armor, the commandoes prepared for their assault. James checked the display on his HUD once more and then brought up the squad freq.

"Tholam you and Arterius in position?" James asked the sniper support as he went through his checklist. They'd already set up the timing for the other squads to hit precisely as the seventh started their operation. Ivizzes and his best recruits were going to launch a raid on a major civil defense armory under Stapali control, while Troaviel and O'Kreamer had set up a series of explosive devices and raids throughout Stapali production facilities.

Everything was set for the first hour of the new day, they had to get in right otherwise the plan would come crashing down around them. As the thoughts ran through James' mind the salarian's voice squawked over his helmet's headset.

"We're in position boss, ready to go as soon as you give the word." The salarian responded as James looked over the weapons arrayed before him at the staging area. He felt a feeling of déjà vu as he once again latched on weaponry before going into a situation he had very little information about. But this time he knew their was an enemy and he was ready for them. Making sure both pistol and shotgun were ready for instant deployment he brought them to rest at their holds. From behind him he felt an armored glove rest on his shoulder.

"Hey, you alright?" Nina's soft voice asked him, it was funny how much she'd changed since training. From the outspoken tech back on the _Osiris,_ she'd become part of an elite commando unit ready to fight against the injustice, a far cry from anything either of them had believed possible. Now she stood looking back to him clad in the jet black armor the entire team wore with a look of determination spread across her face. The expression was shared by all on the team but coming from Nina it caught James a bit off guard.

"Yeah just a little on edge, we can't make any mistakes this time around. Haven't had so many people depending on my leadership since Jutoaw. Just a weird feeling." He said looking back at her intelligent eyes. "I still don't know if I'm the one to lead."

"You were chosen James; it wasn't some random luck of the draw. Everyone in this squad knew you could bring this team together. You can do it you just have to trust us, and yourself." She said as she finished before realizing just how close she moved to him.

"I do trust them, and you." Before either of them could say anything more Bacek arrived in the room.

"15 units captain, we're all ready for you." The turian said before trailing off realizing what was going on. "Oh, sorry" Nina blushed just a bit before brushing past the two and exiting the room.

"Thanks Bacek," The marine said as he lightly punched the turian in the shoulder. Grinning just a tad Bacek followed his friend out and into the final ready room. Everyone save the sniper support and Joavn was ready and able, fully decked out in their armor and specific weaponry. Speed was the key to the operation and James had ordered everyone to pack light with as little gear as needed. Most had opted for pistols and shotguns as well, but James noted that Sol'kahf once more brought his bandolier of blades with him.

"Ok final review. Key objective is Masef and two other key prisoners. Joavn has provided us with the exact floor that both he and our target are being kept in. We approach through the alleyways and take out the first group of guards till we enter the prison. We'll move up to the next level and secure the area. Tholam and Arterius will cover us from position Zeta. They'll eliminate as many guards as possible while we secure the access point to the next level which according to our intelligence is right here next to the surveillance room." He pointed the location out on the maps provided by Chaveninski. "Code phrase for this point is Charlie. We'll post two guards at the stairwell leading to the 3rd floor while the rest of us continue up and secure the target floor. Once there we break out Masef and Joavn and then proceed back to the extraction point at the first floor of the building. Botch code is Red Flag. Distress code is Omega squad. Any questions? No lock and load seventh, let's get this done."

Before the first hour of the new day came the commandoes were in place. Their armor was had a dull tint about it so not even moonlight could reflect off it. The financial district was a ghost town, its only habitants a few scroungers and the merc sentries that the squad had been expecting. James checked his time piece again. 5 units out before the operation began.

He brought up his com system for the last time before the shooting started. "Third this is the Seventh, we're all in position. Waiting for your signal." James spoke into the helmet mike and then waited for Troaviel's reply.

"Roger that Seventh, we're set to go here. Let's get this show on the road." The turian's stalwart voice replied to him. Making a glance to his watch again he noted the time. 2 units.

"Alright troops, standby." James issued to his squad. For a minute they stood in silence and then a few kilometers away from them the explosions started.

All over explosive devices erupted blanketing the night with the sound of rolling thunder. No buildings collapsed completely but a good deal received major destruction to there exterior structure. Mercs ran in panic abandoning their posts while their Stapali handlers shouted orders over the cries of civilians as they ran to the streets in fear. The confusion was massive but it was exactly what the commandoes needed. On the outskirts alarms sounded as the krogan led insurgents started their assault as well.

"Move out." James said as the mercs moved into action preparing to help beat back the civil arrest building in the capitol. All had been preparing for things but now having the situation thrust upon them. James and the Seventh rushed into action bent on getting things under way.

The first merc never had the chance to speak. Bacek's accurate firepower tore through his inactive kinetic barriers flinging the mercenary soldier back into his partner. The five commandoes moved with expert precision, James on point fired two shots right at the surviving guard as they continued. As the squad took position covering the door Cahleura bent down to the bodies and searched for keycards required to open any locked doors.

Just above them James saw a score of sniper blasts rupture the structure wall above their heads. "Just thinning the crowds boss. Prisoners have the wits to keep their heads down, keep moving cap." Tholam informed the squad.

As they entered into prison Sol'kahf opened fire with his shotgun at extreme range halting the two sentry's intent to set off the alarms. Sweeping back and fourth with his weapon the powerful being finaly turned back to James. "Room is secure sir." The squad leader nodded on the broulian's direction before moving to the next phase. Moving to the stairwell, Cahleura took point as she moved cautiously up the stairwell.

As she peaked around the corner she saw no contacts in sight. "All clear, come on up." Sol'kahf followed suit and watched the corridors still the rest of the squad reached the level.

"Something's going on captain, this place is deserted." Sol'kahf's low keyed voice appraised James.

James nodded in the direction of the broulian as he activated his mike. "Joavn, what's going on where are the guards?"

"Negative boss, I'm getting a jamming signal coming from the floor above us. No way Garrick can hear us." Nina told him as she kept a sharp eye on the continuing stairwell.

'Great no inside access, what next?' James thought over his options. "Stay focused squad we still have a mission." He moved to the front of the group and looked up the stairway. "Keep close, but be ready to spread if their bunkered down." He ordered his squad mates.

The group silently moved up and then stopped when they heard an exchange of voices. "He creeps me out that is all I'm saying," The first voice said as the voices grew louder.

"Of course he does, it's what they do. Keep quiet we gotta go check out Martwez and Kolvil." Soon enough the owners of the voices appeared right in front of James, a pair humans in light armor assault rifles held loosely at their sides. James brought the butt of his shotgun into the chin of the first mercenary while Cahleura grabbed the other and quickly setting him against the wall placing her pistol under his chin.

"Not a word." Her clam liquid voice informed the terrified mercenary. James looked to the first unconscious merc and then back up the stairway, and then back to the new hostage. Before he said a word the asari's eyes turned space black and then the mercenary simply crumpled to the floor.

As the man fell in a heap she turned back to James. "Is he dead?" The marine asked the blue skinned commando.

"No, he'll just have a really bad memory when he wakes up in a few hours." She said with a sly smile. James was once more surprised by the asari's repertoire of useful skills. "Shall we press on?"

James moved up into the hallway and pressed his back to the wall making sure not to alert the other guards to his presence. The enemy knew they were coming and giving them precise knowledge wouldn't help the commandoes one bit. He brought his hand down to his belt and drew one of the standard alliance grenades he'd stashed over the years. Brining up the disk he opened the squad channel.

"Let's hit it people, be ready for anything." He got single acknowledgement com clicks from everyone in the facility. Uttering a silent prayer he turned around the corridor and hurled the grenade.

It was a safe bet to say the enemy wasn't anticipating commandoes. The surprised look he got from the first group of enemy soldiers gave James a feeling of satisfaction as the disk shaped grenade raced to the group of mercenaries.

The explosive ruptured through the small space and the only thing that saved the group of mercenaries was their raised kinetic shields. The blue barriers shimmered vibrantly as the first of pair mercenaries was flung backwards by the explosive force. James squared his aim as Bacek moved to the other side of the corridor to blanket the marine's fire. One mercenary took a storm of fire power and got smashed down to the floor.

As James and Bacek kept the fire sustained Nina and Cahleura rushed down the corridor, the technician assaulting the enemy with a barrage of shotgun fire while the asari huntress through cannon balls of biotic fury against their enemies. The comets of blue energy combined with the unprecedented hurricane of mass accelerated pellets rendered another pair of hostiles harmless. As the remaining guards ducked for cover, Nina and Cahleura progressed into the next open space and take cover against the enemy return fire.

"One we need support over here," Nina shouted over the channel link as return fire ripped through the walls providing them with cover.

"Two Six provide cover fire." James yelled over the roar of automatic weapons fire. He switched over to his pistol and started firing accurate fire down the corridor. The corridor was filled with rapid fire crisscrossing the small space. James did his best to keep his line of sights clear for fear of hitting his comrades but the same didn't apply to the mercenaries. Their lines were anything but professionally but in the small space they didn't have a lot of places to go besides the commandoes. He saw another merc fall but heard a cry of pain ahead of him. He turned to see Bacek fall to the floor by him nursing a large crack in his armor.

"Two is down we gotta finish this before more guards come." He shouted as he braced around the corridor once more blasting away with his shotgun once more. Ahead Cahleura motioned to Nina before she rose from her cover. With an outstretched hand she the nearest mercs crashing into the wall behind them. As the last guard prepared to make a break for it Nina rose and fired with her shotgun at almost point blank range. The mercenary's legs caught the brunt of the attack sending him into a wild summersault.

With a loud crunch the man's body came to a stop and the sounds of battle died away. James turned to his fallen comrade as Nina and Cahleura watched the next stairwell for any more mercenaries. The turian had sweat covering his face but he looked relatively calm as James examined the wound. The rounds had penetrated the ablative ceramic and pierced the turian's scaly skin causing a substantial amount of dark blood to exit the wound. James immediately pressed his hand against the wound to stop the bleeding before he heard chatter on his headset.

"Boss you got major incoming from everywhere, you need to cut out of there now!" Tholam's voice wasn't erratic, but his usually quick voice had jumped up a notch. James looked to make sure their was no other injuries as he replied.

"Roger Seven, do your best to keep their heads down! Four find Joavn and Masef prep them for evac now!" he ordered as he brought up a small dispenser of medi-gel up to the wound.

"Sorry James my mistake caught me just as I rounded the corner." Bacek's voice whispered to the marine.

"It's alright; we'll get you fixed up as soon as we're out." He turned around to see the cell doors opening and Nina rushing inside. "Four I need a sitrep now!" he ordered as he sealed the wound.

"I found Masef still looking for Joavn." He saw Nina emerge with the zetrian and found renewed vigor. 'At least something is going right.' He was about to order Sol'kahf to prop up Bacek when he heard Nina's voice again. "Captain I found Joavn, you better take a look at this." James quickly linked up his helmet HUD to Nina's battle recorder and was shocked at what he saw. Lying in the small cell, his face bloody and bruised was the last member of their team. "He's alive captain but we're gonna have to get him out of here fast." Nina said starting to sound a little frightened by the recent actions.

James looked back down the hallway to his objective. "Masef! Get over here now!" he ordered, spurring the green furred alien into action. The resistance fighter quickly moved towards him and the knelt down by Bacek. "I need you to help me get him up on three. One. Two. Three." James urged his body into action and the pair propped the turian up as gun fire issued down the stairwell they had arrived from.

"Who are you?" The zetrian asked hurriedly as helped keep the turian standing tall.

"All you need to know is we're getting you out." James said as he made sure the medi-gel was holding. "Just hold the gun and make sure he doesn't fall."

"One this is Three we've got reinforcements pouring into the building I'm setting up some charges to block their advance but it's gonna take out our exit vector." The broulian's voice boomed in James' ears.

He briskly set his pistol in the zetrian's hands and then looked back at the resistance leader. "Stay close to him, and watch our back. Seven I need an exit our primary route is botched!"

"Boss a military speeder just landed on the roof got enough room for all of you but their depositing more troops as we speak." James could hear the roar of fire almost overpowering the salarian's speech.

"Clear the isle for us we'll take our chance. Everyone up lets move now!" The marine bellowed as he moved down the hallway. "Three you're rearguard, Five you're with me, Five you've got Joavn, lets move it people!" he ordered as he raced up the stairway, the rest of his squad in fast pursuit. He got up to the next level and turned the corner. Already a trio of mercenaries was rushing down on them. Suddenly the wall to the right of the enemy flashed and boiled away as lances of energy burst through sideswiping the mercenaries. One went down clutching his neck while the other two took rounds in the midsection sending them careening into the opposite wall. The adrenaline coursed through James as he led his team through hell. A pair of guards in a room on his left emerged but the squad leader kept their heads down with a pair of shotgun blasts. When they tried to reemerge his asari squad mate hurled a large terminal bank in their direction. James took two steps up before he ran into a heavily armored mercenary.

The fellow human stood a head taller than James and tried to bring up his assault rifle but the marine was already moving. Using his shotgun he slammed the combatant's weapon away but the merc's powerful return punch caught James off guard spinning him slightly. James tried to keep his balance but only managed to grab onto the collar of his opponent sending them both tumbling back onto the floor the team was trying to escape.

James let out an 'Oof' as the two landed in a heap but the mercenary was already moving. The marine heard a weapon unfolding from its mount and then desperately grabbed a hold of the mercenary's arm as he tried to aim a pistol at the marine's face. With all his might focused James tried to dislodge the weapon but the mercenary's strength was surprisingly strong and he moved his left hand around James' throat causing the marine to gasp and spasm as he tried to breath.

Out of nowhere a knife flew into the mercenary's back causing his enemy to howl in rage as he slowly looked back at the blade handler. The merc stared back to Sol'kahf's gaze giving James the opening he needed. Putting as much force behind it as he could he extended his fingers out in close formation and speared his hand upward into the man's throat. As his hand connected he felt something in the man loosen as he gagged and choked, freeing his grip on James and allowing the marine to reach his pistol and stand up over his fallen enemy. As he turned around he saw the broulian waiting to make sure the squad leader was alright.

"Go go help them secure the speeder." He ordered hastily before turning back to the merc. James curtly brought his pistol to bear on his would be killer and placed his finger on the trigger. He heard the sound of gunfire around him, but it was not his own. Quickly racing back up the stairwell he fired a few erratic shots in the direction of the reinforcements.

As he made it to the roof he passed the broulian once more who simply nodded to him as he dropped another explosive parcel back down the way James had come. As the remaining squad members boarded the transport weapons fire scoured the roof causing the commandoes kinetic barriers to flare. Some of the mercenaries had tired to trekking through the collapsed stairwells and had entered the adjacent buildings to bring the squad down. James heard the ping of metal as tracer rounds flew all around just like back in the corridor. With Sol'kahf's help the exhausted human made it aboard into the clutches of his team mates. At the cockpit Nina brought the speeder's barriers to full power which easily outmatched the fire that continued to track the escaping vehicle. As she quickly brought the speeder away from the ruined building the Seventh was treated to a welcoming sight. In the wee hours of the mourning they could just make out the rising sun in the vehicles small viewport, Bacek was stabilized and Cahleura and Masef got to work seeing about Joavn's injuries.

As Nina took the vehicle away from the capitol and to the outskirts the one time criminal finaly managed to speak. "This guy came to my cell, a little after I transmitted to you. Asked me who I worked for and what I was here to do. I told him I was no rat, so a couple of his goons come in and try to tune me up." The human wiped some dry blood off of his lips before he continued. "I said nothing boss, but I heard something about who the bastards were. A name I never heard before, something called Cerberus. They said Cerberus had a connection to everything going down, didn't hear much after that though, they brought me back my cell and then you showed up." He finished as he looked back at Bacek resting in his harness. "I feel bad bout Vulcrius boss, I should have been able to warn you."

James shook his head at the remark. "No Joavn, I okayed the plan to send you in there, it wasn't your call. Obviously someone has a bigger stake in this than we thought. You did well for what was thrown at you. Besides that everyone made it, not exactly my best mission but a successful one nonetheless. Try to grab some sleep lieutenant." Joavn nodded and then fell into a slumber as James moved through the small space of the speeder. Making sure Cahleura and Sol'kahf were alright he moved to the cockpit where Nina still held the controls.

"How you doing?" he managed to ask as he sat down on the bench lining the left and right of the speeder.

Nina slowly unsealed her helmet and then dropped it to the floor. Her hair was a bit ecstatic but her eyes still held the same determination before the operation had started.

"I'll be fine, how's Bacek?" she asked turning her head back to the cabin.

"He'll make it once we arrive at the base. What's our ETA?" he asked as she turned back to the sensors.

"Shouldn't be more than a few minutes, who ever owned this thing kept it in good condition." She wiped a little bit of precipitation off her face before turning back to James. "Oh my James you're hurt." She said looking back to him.

James looked puzzled at first and then looked down to chest armor. He didn't realize how he'd missed it but their was a trio of entry wounds that had ruptured through the armor there. "Shit." Was all he got out as he crumpled back against the wall of the speeder. His vision started to blur but he managed to hear Nina calling Cahleura to take over the controls and then she was next to him with a canister of medi-gel. Before he could say anything he blacked out.


	17. Rest and Retribution

**Author's Note. **Working to make the story more dramatic and more realistic while still being a good and entertaining piece of work. Please let me know if I'm going in the right direction. **As a side note thanks for the continued review and support always good to hear feedback.**

**Beloraud**

**Outskirts of the Holkliorian Plains**

**5 Hours 28 Units. Date unspecified for Black Ops purposes.**

**Day Five of Operation "Abolitionary Rise"**

"**The Militia"**

His eyes blinked open and then closed back under the bright light. He didn't remember anything from after boarding the speeder but soon enough he figured out where he was. They must have made it to the zetrian compound. Before he could move he felt a small throbbing pulsating through his head and brought a hand up to rub the area and then images flashed across his mind. Bacek, Joavn, shot, no I'm shot, and I was. He looked down across his bare chest to where a large bandage covered his lower mid section. There was no bleeding but as he rubbed his hand across the bandage he felt three individual lumps of material underneath the larger bandage. James leaned forward and looked around trying to figure out where the rest of his squad was at. A monitor hooked up into his left arm started beating in a slow rhythm as he surveyed the room. The structure seemed to be a large tent with various medical machines as well as many other beds spread out in perfect parade ground formation.

To his right Nina and Sol'kahf arrived along with a couple of zetrians James didn't recognize. Both were in their own rights unique despite the same base coat all their species shared. The one on the right had a long white and black medical uniform while the other's cloths seemed to be a patchwork of odd cold weather articles of clothing, but the assault rifle the being held was an Elanus Risk Control Banshee. The sleek weapon contrasted starkly with the zetrians haggard appearance. The entire group looked at him with a rising sense of gladness as they encircled James.

"How you feeling captain?" Sol'kahf's lumbering voiced as ked as the tall being stood near his bed.

"About as good as any time I've woken up in triage, what happened after I blacked out?" the marine asked looking into the eyes of all gathered around him.

"Your crew was a few minutes out when they radioed in saying they needed immediate medical treatment, they brought you here and we patched you up as best as we could. You're a remarkably tough individual Mr. Fields, you suffered substantial muscle and tissue damage from the wounds but luckily they were slowed down by your armor's under layering." The zetrian in the doctor's uniform informed him. "I am sorry to say that the delightful skull marking imprinted across your lower chest has some minor abrasions to it due to our patchwork but that's the worst of it."

James saw Nina smiling slightly in his direction at the comment and then James remembered the rest of the squad. "What about Bacek and Joavn, what happened to them?" he asked hurriedly making sure he continued to lead the squad even from a sick bed.

"The turian and the other human are quite alright, actually faired much easier in the battle than you. I trust next time you'll realize the full extent of your own injuries before trying to kill yourself saving others." The doctor continued.

James looked up at the alien's cold hearted remark. "It's the burden of command doc, you need to put the squad ahead of yourself and complete the mission, and my injuries were irrelevant until I chose to acknowledge them." The marine continued to stare down the zetrian physician. "Who are you anyway?"

"Sorry captain, my mistake. My name is Valuh Eyon. Formerly chief medical officer of the Stapali Corporation, I was on assignment to a field armory when your allies, interjected my work." The zetrian's words echoed in James mind until he made the realization, Ivizzes must have grabbed him when he made his assault, that's why they have a guard watching him. He was a prisoner of war as well as an asset for the militia; the krogan definitely had continued its unorthodox tactics while operating at the planet.

"So I guess the other captains a here as well?" he asked his squad mates.

"Yeah Troaviel came in right before us and then O'Kreamer arrived about an hour after. Tholam and Arterius pulled up less than an hour ago, we're all accounted for." Nina said to the comfort of James' mind. "In fact we're all just waiting on you as usual." She smirked at him.

James swung his legs to the left letting them dangle off the bed and then dropped down. As he straightened his posture his gut roared in agony at him but he fought through the pain as he stood up. "My uniform around here somewhere, I don't really care for the hospital fatigues."

The marine exited the refresher after a few moments. Once more he was adorned in his JTOP greens he felt rejuvenated, that despite all the problems they had pulled of their first real mission. He knew there were many more to come but as long as he kept it together the marine knew they could beat whatever they were put up against.

As he moved away to the exit of the tent he saw Nina standing before him. Her expression was unusually blank but her eyes seemed to shimmer just a little. Suddenly she embraced him putting her head on his shoulder. Soon enough tears fell from her eyes as she spoke.

"I thought you died on the ride back, when you blacked out I didn't know what to do, I thought I lost you." Her eyes lanced back at him as he held her close. Before he knew what happened he brought her up to him and kissed her forgetting the mourning's entire ordeal and the task ahead. Her lips felt warm against his and the two lost themselves in other's hold. When Nina finaly released, James wanted to protest but she put her finger to his lips holding him silent.

"Is that what all marines think. Get a purple heart and then you get the girl?" she smiled playfully as she moved from his arms. "You're gonna have to make it through the whole mission if you want to see how the story ends jarhead, see you at the briefing room." She said just as she exited the medical tent. Left alone for the moment Jams let a wide smile cross his face before he followed in Nina's wake.

"Fields good to see you up and about," Troaviel said as he shook hands with the marine. James nodded to the fellow captain before noticing the rest of the people assembled. As he'd been informed there were no casualties to speak of, everyone looked devoid of sleep but better to be tired than dead. Joavn had a few bandage across his face but other than that there was no other visual bandages. Bacek was the second to approach him and patted the human on the shoulder.

"Hey boss glad you showed that quake what real soldiers are made of, he said you never had a chance when we first brought you here." The turian told James as they took their seats at the briefing room. The area was a tent similar to the medical center James had just left, and had all the makings of prefab buildings ready to be built and used for quick deployment. As everyone took their seats Troaviel moved to the center of the room.

"Listen up as you all know the first and second part of the operation has been a success. All teams inserted onto the planet safely and prepared and launched successful assaults on various military structures as well as securing one of our prime targets." At this James thought the zetrian would emerge but he was surprised to se that the resistance leader was not among the zetrians inside the area. Before James could figure out why, he heard Troaviel continue.

The next part of the operation however is the most difficult. We must set a final precedent on how to accomplish a new and stable form of government for the entire planet. Our resources are limited but we believe with the freeing of Masef and the rising call of the militia strengthening the will of the zetrian populace we can achieve our goal. We currently have about 200 hundred zetrians in training right now, because of their mal nourishment it is taking longer to train them but a number of highly proficient and performed well in the attack on the Stapali armory as well as the acquisition of Doctor Eyon, who's continued stream of information has helped us create these preliminary plans." On a much more antiquated projector than James was used to, the fellow captain turned on the noisy machine and it spurted forth a slideshow of images.

Once more they were looking at the Stapali Headquarters but now they had both the set of information and pictures from Chaveninski combined with their old information given to them all the way back at the Citadel. As we all know we cannot stand up in a head to head fight with the Stapali security force on task at the headquarters. Besides that it still limits our area of striking ability, if all we can hit are the exterior facilities it will not bring and end to the Stapali Corp and the ruling family. Floor is open to ideas on what exactly we should do." The turian finished and then turned to the room.

Joavn was the first to speak up in the crowd. "What about the Cerberus troops I encountered at the prison, any new development on that."

"Yes, the good doctor provided us with info saying that the Stapali Corporation received a number of Cerberus agents about a month before we arrived. He wasn't told their purpose but he says they started appearing at major sites under Stapali control," Ivizzes crumbled from where he sat cross armed with the rest of his squad.

"The information coincides with what lieutenant Gerick told us about his experience at the prison facility. For those of you who don't know Cerberus with a Black Ops group created by the Systems Alliance. When they went rogue is still up to debate but over the past years they have proved to be accessories to brutal genome experimentation as well as the murders of several top Alliance Scientists who were originally part of their operation. Several bases were actually taken out during the past few months but other that they haven't resurfaced on anyone's radar."

"Cerberus' presence doesn't make any sense though." O'Kreamer spoke up as the turian finished his report. "It's like you said they were doing a lot of research into making super soldiers and the like, but they wouldn't be behind anything like this, unless the Gemaum."

"No, it's specifically geared to only the zetrians, there's no evidence to support that they've perfected a variation for humans or any other species for that matter." One of the other commandoes brought up.

"We'd know for sure if you let me have a minute alone with the good doctor." Ivizzes pumped his fists together his eyes gleaming with anger.

"Doctor Eyon needs to remain alive until we figure out a way to get into the Stapali Headquarters, but we don't have a good way to get from Point Alpha to Point Zeta."

"Gemaum." Everyone turned to the source of the voice; it was the first time James had spoken since most of the squad had seen him collapse aboard the speeder. "The Gemaum is the key, the ruling family keeps control through the Stapali Corp and they keep control through the supply and demand of the spice. We take out the supply; the zetrians will start to get really cranky from their need for it. You throw a wrench in any machine and the machine breaks." The marine said as he leaned back in his seat.

"You're really think the same goes for a interstellar corporation?" Troaviel asked him as he entered several streams of codes into the terminal at the center of the room.

"Fields is right, it's simple but effective." The Krogan squad leader grumbled to the other commandoes. "When fighting a giant you have to go for the legs."

"How do you cut the legs of a twenty story building with four thousand guards in and around it?" Bacek asked as he lounged near the rest of the seventh.

"Well we can't just strap a nuke to it if that's what some of you are thinking." Troaviel glanced in Ivizzes' direction. "But I think Fields is on to something, if we find a way to stop the flow of Gemaum, a large portion of the zetrians will at the most go into complete civil unrest. Our best hope would be for mass riots, that'd force the majority of the mercenaries to come out of the headquarters and onto the streets. Then we move in and finish this once and for all."

**10 Hours. 4 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Six of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

James sipped the strong beverage with content as he relaxed at one of the street cafés of Kiorg. He'd been nursing the same brand for about three hours since arriving back at the capitol. All thirty two commandoes had split up into pairs and spread out through the city to find the supply route of the Gemaum. James and Nina had managed to find some civilian clothes at the resistance center and had toured the city streets trying to find the source of spice.

It was easy to see evidence of the spice everywhere, entire groups of zetrian workers seemed to act mindlessly as they worked tirelessly maintaining the large venues of the mighty city. But so far they hadn't been able to find any supply lines of the spice. As he finished the third drink this hour he looked across the table to where Nina was chatting with a mercenary. The younger human had ranted about his large credit line and how the Stapali Corp paid him more than anyone because he was the toughest merc in the city. Leaving James with the bill Nina had slid down the bar to where the mercenary continued his newest rant about his exploits. Now she was deep in conversation with the hired gun feigning interest in the merc's tale of how he'd single handily eliminated an entire team of asari commandoes.

"Yeah they were pulling out all the stops throwing their biotic crap around like there was no tomorrow, but I kept my cool. Pulled out my trusty shotgun and gave em each a ticket to see the goddess."

"So then you decided to come help us with our little problem?" Nina fit the uncaring cute girl so well James almost forgot what she looked like with a pistol grasped in each hand.

"I go where the wind takes me, but I have to say," he looked up at Nina. "The accommodations are rather improved from my last tour." James hardly saw the slap coming but the merc didn't see it for sure. Nina's gloved hand imprinted a red print on the merc's cheek that he would not sourly forget. But as she connected with her right hand her left hand reached into his jacket pocket and grabbed his wallet. While he was still recoiling Nina swiftly deposited the small parcel in her own pocket before leaving the bar. As she swept by James' table she smoothly dropped the wallet before the merc could even realize what he was missing something.

Once she'd exited the bar James soon followed after her wallet in his hands. Infiltrating the mercs would take time that the commandoes didn't have. James had figured that a simple grab would work well to gain the identity cards required to get them into high security areas. He'd gotten Joavn to share some of his former skills with the squads and each was hard at work finding inattentive mercs to relieve of their key cards.

The specific mercs had been easy enough to target, any on leave from their duties often made it to the seedier bars of the capitol. When figuring out who should approach him Nina was the obvious choice of distraction. Now making their way back to Chaveninski's shop to regroup James looked over their catch of stolen goods. They'd lifted four identity cards various mercs throughout the city. Each one would have to be rewritten for the Cohort's purposes but Tholam had found that it was actually a rather simple operation once they got the actual cards. Changing the information stored on the actual Stapali Corporation's hard drives so that the ploy would work was the hard part. But Tholam felt confident enough that once they got enough of the cards gathered he'd come up with a solution.

As they made their way down the walkway James stopped for a second observing a news broadcast, on one of sidewalk's public screens. The image behind the salarian anchor showed an all too familiar face. Captain Ivizzes grim face showed in start contrast to the salarian's rather sleek physique. As the recording started to start again James and Nina tuned in.

"Startling news today but it seems that the Stapali Corporation has fallen victim to an act of terrorism. Early yesterday mourning a Stapali armory was brutally attacked by forces led by this unknown Krogan. The attacking force violently assaulted the armory stealing many of the stored munitions and supplies. The krogan leader himself is responsible for the deaths of over 20 Stapali employees but even more alarming is the loss of renowned medial examiner doctor Valuh Eyon who perished in the attack. We'll have more on this…"

"Why would they think Eyon is dead?" Ivizzes hadn't incinerated the bodies as far as he knew, wasn't really his style.

"Maybe they need to keep up the appearance that he is dead so that people don't panic about loosing their secrets." Nina added as she grabbed his hand and led him further into the city. Come on we gotta report to the rest of the squads."


	18. Foundation Rocking

**Beloraud**

**Kiorg**

**11 Hours. 23 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Six of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

"**The Knowledge"**

"You want to tell us why we pulled off our recon activity Fields?" O'Kreamer asked as the Thirteenth took their seats in the briefing room once more.

"Lieutenant Collins thinks she's got a good idea on how we can hurt the Stapali grip on the people." James said as he stood before the collected members of the Cohort. "As many of you might have seen Captain Ivizzes has been made by surveillance taken during his raid on the Stapali Armory. What grabbed our interest is that the news claimed that that our quack died in the attack. Nina thinks that someone's trying to keep the knowledge of his capture off the public record. There's something the doc isn't telling us that makes him even more important than what we originally thought."

"You're thinking that something he knows would unbalance the masses so much that the corporation would simply label him as KIA then captured." Troaviel said as most of those gathered came to the same conclusion.

"The Gemaum, it's not perfected." Cahleura answered. "They must have told the zetrians that the spice was being modified to not be so addictive. They would have used this to keep the workers under their control even more, quite devious."

"How do we use it against the corporation?" the mighty krogan captain asked methodically.

"It's simple, we set up a public demonstration to bring light to the Doctor's survival and tell the people just how much the corporation is holding them down. If anything it will create a big enough disturbance that a large portion of the mercenaries will be dispensed to restore the peace, while this happens we'll send a task force in to destroy as many Gemaum storehouses as we can. Without the stockpile of the spice their contingency plans will be caput." James said as he outlined a new strategy against their objective.

"I'm guessing with the demonstration we'll need a lot of support, meaning the militia." Troaviel noted as James finished his synopsis. The turian turned to the krogan captain and uttered a new question. "How many men could you put together in a few days?"

The mighty reptilian warrior balanced a large obsidian blade with two mighty fingers as he turned back to his fellow captain. "I could have a hundred men battle ready in 24 hours. The supplies we got from the armor aren't military grade spec but their decent." Ivizzes appraised the rest of the Cohort.

"Good to hear captain," Troaviel observed his timepiece and then returned his gaze back to the squads. "Captains meet me in four hours to finalize the details of the new operation. Dismissed."

**15 Hours. 30 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Six of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

The four captains and the former resistance leader assembled in one of the smaller prefab structures. James took his seat between Ivizzes and O'Kreamer as Troaviel started the briefing.

"Here's what we have so far. We'll start a demonstration with Masef and some of the militia showing how deep the Stapali Corp's corruption runs. Once the populace sees just how far they've been tricked, the least we will get is a massive riot that will hopefully escalate through the city. While the riot spreads we will use the stolen identity cards to infiltrate four major Stapali storehouses each a good distance away from the other. This will ensure that the mercenaries can't launch a concentrated retaliation against us."

"Third squad will attack the southeast store house here," He pointed to the lower merchant sector of Kiorg. "The attack will begin at exactly half an hour into the demonstration." The turian turned to James who presently took Troaviel's place.

"Seventh squad will attack the southwest storehouse at the first hour. It's located right next to the spaceport and will allow us to serve as backup for the demonstration should they need it." He finished as he outlined his part.

"Thirteenth will infiltrate the northeast storehouse at an hour and a half." O'Kreamer replied.

"And the Twenty-eighth decimates the final storehouse at two hours in." Ivizzes

said as he returned to his seat.

"I wonder captains; just why you would think I would risk assassination by being part of this action?" Masef asked his voice a bit high strung for such a preemptive meeting.

"Masef, you are the key to uniting the zetrians; if you bring this evidence to them they'll see just how much they've been wronged by the Stapali." O'Kreamer reminded the long haired zetrian.

"All of them did not listen to me before what makes you think there will even be the slightest change this time around. No there has to be another way." The zetrian bluntly stated as he moved to leave the room. A massive shadow fell across him and then Ivizzes words filled the air.

"Maybe you didn't hear us Masef," the krogan put a hand on the zetrian's shoulder and non to gently sat him back down in his seat. "You think we busted you out of that hole because we felt that you'd been wronged in the past. No, it's because you serve a purpose more than sitting around waiting to die." Ivizzes eyes shot comets of anger back at the now subdued zetrian as he waited for a response.

"It's easy for you to say, you're not going to be the one against hundreds of mercs sent in to quell the populace." Masef countered as he stared up to the krogans leather like face.

"Masef two of my soldiers almost died because of you, I almost died to save your skin. Don't think for a minute that you're worth more than any of our commandoes." James retorted before he continued. "You risk your life being a resistance leader before, now you expect me to think that you're afraid of repeating what you did before. The least you could do is this demonstration; if you do this we can free this world from its tyranny. Can we trust you to do this?"

The zetrian bowed his head before the krogan and then turned to look at James, "You speak the truth human, you did help me out of a bad situation. It is not for me to back down from something I started earlier," Looking to each captain in turn he finaly rested back his gaze on Ivizzes. "I will do my part in this action, it is the least I can do." The zetrian turned and left the briefing room leaving the commando leaders alone.

"Good work Fields, I was afraid I'd have to jog his memory on how to be a leader again." The krogan said as he smiled towards James.

"Wasn't about to let Joavn keep reminding about that beating he got to break him out of there." James said with a grin. "I think we're done here."

"Alright, good work. Let's make sure this goes on without a hitch. We all have assignments to attend to and we should all make sure to help out with the militia training once your squad is ready." Troaviel finished as the captains dismissed themselves to their respective tasks.

**9 Hours. 34 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Seven of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

"If your opponent attacks you like this." Sol'kahf informed his students as Arterius mimed a swift left jab to the broulian. "All you need to do is this." Without warning the mighty broulian batted the jab away with his right hand and then followed up with a one two punch to the turian's abdomen. Arterius beat back a cry of pain still fell to the ground clutching his injury.

The recruits watched in wonder as the taller being executed the moves expertly and without pause. Three more time he demonstrated a variety of parry's and hold attacks to immediately subdue an enemy combatant. To Arterius' credit he took it with grace, letting the broulian toss him here and their as Sol'kahf went through an array of maneuvers that the recruits would need to know for the demonstration ahead.

As James past by the group he nodded to his subordinates, the training was going well. Once the demonstration was in progress it would be up to the militia to hold their own against the retaliation of the Stapali Corp. And judging by what they'd seen at the prison breakout James knew it would be no walk in the park. Off to his right Bacek and Tholam were at the range preparing for the commandoes own operation. True the demonstration would be dangerous, but if the members of the Cohort didn't achieve their goals they'd be stuck on this planet for a very long time. Tholam had reprogrammed the identity cards to allow the group access into the store houses but no one was stupid enough to think that the Stapali Corp wouldn't realize just what a peculiar group of mercenaries were placing in some of their prize store houses.

As James took his own place at the range and keyed up the controls he set up a course. The assault rifle unfolded as he unslung it from his back and then a group of targets popped up down the range. James glanced down the sight preparing each shot with the precision of an artist envisioned each stroke of the brush. The controlled bursts limited the recoil and overheating. Each of the three targets snapped under the barrage of mass accelerated pellets and then James lowered his rifle.

'Targets aren't real targets.' His marine drill instructor had always ordered him repeatedly throughout his training. There's always going to be a fine line between what is false, and what is real. James glanced back over to Sol'kahf's training seminar. As hard as they worked today, the challenge tomorrow would no doubt cause many of their lives. Ivizzes had done a good job finding specific agents for sabotage and guerilla warfare but the zetrians weren't frontline troops by any standards. He knew they'd have their work cut out for them tomorrow.

Preparations were already made thanks mostly to Chaveninski who helped smuggle a large cache of weapons back into the city for the demonstration. Tonight the weapons would be hid in strategic points all close to the demonstration. The recruits had been told not to result to the weapons unless there was no other option, but James and the others knew that the mercenaries would not react in a non violent response to the demonstration.

Yes tomorrow would make or break the operation. If everything succeeded they'd have permanently crippled the Stapali Corp's grip on the people and even the mercenaries wouldn't be sticking around to try to stop the complete revolution of the zetrians. If they failed, then there probably wouldn't be enough of the commandoes left to continue the operation.

**13 Hours. 42 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Eight of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

Masef looked up to gaze at the bright cityscape before him. All this built with hours of forced zetrian labor. The first time he'd arrived at the planet he'd been bewildered by the seeming magnificence of the capitol, but soon enough he'd seen just how far the corruption ran behind mesmerizing sights and sounds. It was exactly why he'd started the resistance movement. As the banners started to raze around him shouting liberty and freedom he moved to the podium. All around him trained zetrians ready and willing to give up their lives in the cause of freeing the world stood ready.

He took to the stage and looked out onto the already thriving market place. Already crowds of people had gathered to observe what exactly just what was going on in the area. Turning to a pair of the most experienced freedom fighters he nodded to each of them in turn and then turned to the streets. "Citizens of Beloraud, it is the time of action. Together united as one we can throw off the shackles of oppression and forever rid out planet of this unjustified tyranny."

James stood at the ready in the Guardian VIII armored suit just outside the target storehouse. The group had opted for a mix of heavy to medium grade armor instead of the sleek black suits used in the previous night op. Looking more like a group of weary commandoes they felt there would be much less suspicion on their insertion.

Bacek took lead and moved swiftly toward the main doorway and entered followed closely by first Cahleura and the rest of the squad. Inside James saw the turian already chatting with the pair of security guards. "Central said we need to be posted in the area, something about rising tensions." The turian informed the guard sentry.

"I didn't get any message from the high ups, better call it in." the salarian guard stated as he moved to the nearest com terminal.

"Come on sergeant central's gonna have their hands full with that riot downtown." Bacek responded just as the guard stopped before he brought up the handset.

"Yeah Torab, wouldn't mind having a couple extra guys around if the zetrians get antsy." A human mercenary waiting near the salarian sergeant spoke up as the salarian seemed to finaly relax.

"Very well Oxil," he turned back to Bacek and the group and then motioned to the scanner. "Scan your identity cards one at a time and then I'll find a room for you."

James glanced to his salarian squad mate. It was the ultimate test of Tholam's skill, he'd reprogrammed the identity cards to match the identities of the squad but they also had a program inserted that would backpedal to the corporate mainframe and create the identities in their system to avoid any mishap. Tholam said the process would take less than a second but James had an eerie feeling that if there was any lag in the process the salarian guard wouldn't be object to alerting central about the peculiar squad.

As Bacek slid his card into the scanner James held his breath until a slight beep sounded and a green light appeared over the card slot. The program had worked James thought as he started moving forward as his team moved up the line. As they moved through the checkpoint the overhead security turrets disarmed and the sentry troops lowered their weapons. Once they all passed the checkpoint Torab spoke up again.

"Ok now just what are you thugs specialized for." He said as he turned back to face Bacek. The turian grinned slightly and then swiftly drew his pistol and then lined it up with salarian's head.

"Mainly infiltration and sabotage." Bacek said baring his teeth as James and the rest of the squad powered up their weapons and securing the rest of the guards. As Nina and Arterius grabbed their weapons the human merc turned back to his salarian superior.

"Ok boss next time we just shoot em." Oxil said as Torab stared angrily back at him."

"Idiot," Torab said as the commandoes ushered them into a cold storage holding tank.


	19. Playing with Fire

**Beloraud**

**Kiorg**

**13 Hours. 50 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Eight of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

"**Revolution"**

James made sure the lock engaged on the storage unit as the commando squad moved quickly to secure the rest of the facility. The members of the Cohort had to set ten charges along the structure grid of facility so that there were no chances of the building standing after. They also needed to secure at least a large sample of the spice for study and hopefully production of a cure so that the zetrians would eventually be free of the addictions.

Cahleura and Bacek proceeded forward making sure there were no guards in sight. The hallway led to the nearest stairwell that would allow the commandoes entrance into the basement floor. James was right with them as their neared their goal leaving Tholam in charge of the main security chamber to keep control of the situation.

"Boss I have several mercenary tags headed your way about to enter from a service corridor." The salarian said keeping his voice from sounding too apprehensive.

"Roger Five, keep me posted." He held up a fist and then motioned to his squad mates to take cover. The asari and her turian counterpart moved behind a stack of crates while James moved against the wall leading into the nearby intersection.

Five mercs emerged from the service corridor their rifles held loosely at their sides, no one had gotten an alarm out. James shotgun bucked hard against his arm as a roar filled his ear drums. The first pair of mercs caught the main force of the attack and immediately dropped while the rest squared the commandoes in their sights and opened fire. "Intruders!" someone yelled over the storm of fire power as James turned around the corner and fired away with his shotgun keeping the mercs close to the door. Bacek's more accurate bursts of rifle shots splattered against the mercenaries' barriers and one merc fell back through the doorway leaving his compatriots to their fate.

One merc finaly fell and the other one broke cover exiting the same door his fellow soldier had just used. "Secure it," James said as Bacek and Cahleura emerged from their own cover. The asari huntress moved low along the wall and watched the hallway for any more enemies while the turian hit the door controls sealing off the service tunnel.

"All clear boss." Bacek said as the door panel turned from having a series of green spherical lights to a set of red ones.

**14 Hours, 00 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Eight of Operation "Abolitionary Rise" **

James led the group methodically through each chamber of the facility using Tholam's guiding eyes to pinpoint just where any mercs were going to pop up. After they had secured every secondary path into the main structure of the store house the squad leader radioed in.

"Tholam, we've secured all the exit vectors. Tell the team to move out to their assignments. It's time to blow up a whole load of spice racks." James said he ordered Bacek to unload the demolition packs slung across the turian's armored back.

Masef slid inward to the merc's jab. The commando trained fighter brought his left hand up in a fist while snapping his right hand downwards. The loud crack that resounded from the merc's arm was nothing compared to the cry of pain the hired gun. With a sweep of his leg the merc fell to the ground and the zetrian brought up his fists to

fight the next incoming mercenary. Up ahead he saw the other members of the protest as they fought against the horde of mercenaries.

The fighting had erupted without warning; a line of at least thirty well armed mercenaries had arrived on the scene demanding that they disband the meeting. The protesters had stood their ground and then something had happened. An explosion rocked the area catch both protestors and mercenaries and the resistance fighters had instantly fallen on their foes still trying to use non lethal resistance against an all too intimidating arsenal arrayed against them.

Using the full amount of combat skills available the resistance fighters had easily dealt with the first row of the enemy, but when the mercenaries had opened fire the melee had almost turned into a massacre. Protestors had fallen everywhere with no kinetic barriers to protect them but Masef had closed the gap immediately followed by several of the trained resistance fighters. The two forces had clashed right atop the busy market crowds. Many of the crowd was jostled into the fight and many others joined the struggle seeing the mercs' candid use of violence against the protestors.

Now Masef was knee deep in mercenary fighters as he tried to remember all that the krogan had taught him and his compatriots. As more and more fighters joined the fight, Masef was finding it harder and harder to maintain a constant defense. As the next attacker rushed toward him the resistance leader held his ground.

"Charges are set let's move it!" James said over the helmet com. Cahleura rose up from the final demolition pack and then brought up her pistol again. The team arrived back at the main entrance and linked up with the rest of the squad.

"All secure boss, charges set for twenty units." Tholam surmised as the squad exited the chamber. With their captured charges in tow the heavy doors parted into the wide boulevard that led straight to the facility.

Waiting for them on the street was 25 slate grey armored soldiers waited in an arrowhead formation invertly set to the commando squad. The leader who had a white armored pauldrons was the first to speak to the commandoes.

"Intruders!" he yelled in a pure military voice. "Lay down your weapons in the name of the Stapali Corporation." The group arrayed against them had high military spec weapons and gear easily outmatching the commandoes in their patchwork of borrowed suits.

In one swift movement James grabbed his pistol from its place and fired one shot into the waiting merc. The blast caught the leader square in the face. As the man crumpled to the ground the one time marine tracked the other mercenaries with his pistol. "Sorry mercs, this planet's in need of a few changes. Beginning with what we do here." James lined up the next merc in his sights as the enemy soldier raised his rifle. Lost in the action James fired.

The room was dark with no lights anywhere. Located in the palace it was one of the closely guarded secrets that the ruling family had kept closed during their many years of living in the palace. Now it was the setting of a meeting between two of the most influential people on the planet too date.

"I believe you told me yesterday that the situation was under control," the first speaker took a sip from an intricately decorated cup before continuing. "Now there are protests all over the capitol. What has happened to your promises of security?"

"They remain the same sir, do not forget for a moment just how much lies on my mission succeeding. There is a lot that is tasked to you remaining in control here. If you think for a moment that I am not taking every effort possible to see that we come out on top here," he reached for something on his belt. "Than I'll be more than happy to let my employer know about you… hesitation." The second speaker informed the first.

The first speaker immediately bowed his head at the notion and then turned back to his fellow. "Of course not, I am merely at an impasse over recent events. Things are starting to escalate out of control."

"And I told you we have the situation under control, even as we speak," he looked out the single window of the room. "My men are dealing with the nuisance as we speak. Still don't know exactly who these trouble makers are but they are being dealt with." The second figure spoke. "Most harshly I promise you."

"They had better not appear on our radar ever again. We have enough problems with the loss of Dr. Eyon."

James braced his back hard against the wall as the aged brickwork burst against the torrent of well aimed firepower. Beside him Arterius kept pressure on Tholam's shoulder wound while keeping his right hand firmly set on his rifle. "I need suppressive firepower on their right flank now!" James shouted into his helmet link.

"We're pinned down at the alleyway entrance." Sol'kahf bellowed back to him. The squad leader reviewed his options quickly; outnumbered and outgunned they couldn't push simply push through the mercs. James primed a grenade and came around the corner for a second to throw the explosive toward the remaining eighteen commandoes still set against them. The enemy soldiers tried to move but enough were caught in the shockwave to cause a momentary loss in their concentration. To his far left James watched as the broulian turned from the alley entrance and opened fire with his rifle spraying the area with deadly firepower.

Another pair of mercs fell silent as Sol'kahf and Cahleura pummeled the bunkered downed foes. James rushed forward and then dropped down at one of the abandoned vendor carts. As his cover started evaporating around him he heard the greatest sound he could think of. Roars of protest erupted all around them and then suddenly rioters appeared in the area. Zetrians and fellow citizens alike poured through the intersection spurred on by all that started in the city square. About half the mercs were immediately thrown into new melee. As the company soldiers jostled with the citizenry half of the mercenaries were swept away in the flood. The mob stopped there however as the remaining mercenaries fired sporadic warning shots into their path. A few protestors were hit but most ran inaccurate into the nearby buildings. It was enough however to dissuade the crowd who dove for cover wherever they could. While a pair of mercs maintained a watchful eye over the rioters the remainder resumed firing.

The squad leader heard the rapid thump thump thump against his cover and then looked for the rest of his team mates. Using a derelict sky car for cover was Bacek Joavn just to his left. James clicked his helmet com twice and then saw the fellow human turn to the signal's source.

The former marine held his fingers spread wide and then closed them into a fist. He saw the turian nod in his direction before popping out from cover and firing on the remaining mercs. When Joavn's fire joined Bacek's James bounded over the vendor cart just as it gave way under the sustained barrage. Splinters soared everywhere as James rush toward his enemies. Kneeling down just as a trio of mercs noticed him, the marine leveled his shotgun.

The twin blasts tore right through the mercenary armor but the weapon was overheated and rendered useless. As he lowered his smoking weapon he heard a click somewhere to his right. Turning he found himself staring at the twin barrels of a pistol staring right back at him. The merc's expression was hidden by his closed visor but James heard his response clearly enough.

"You've become quite the nuisance Captain Fields. It's time to meet your maker." Suddenly the merc's helmet was serrated in two as a hail of gunfire ruptured the armor plating. The body fell and crumpled to a heap on the ground as James registered just what had happened. Behind him he saw Nina as she lowered her assault rifle while her eyes continued to scan the area for the remainder of the mercs. He nodded thanks to her before he heard Bacek's voice over the com.

"Captain the rest of the mercs headed back onto 34th street should we engage?" the turian asked quickly as he approached James. Looking back at his squad he saw that no one had critical injuries from the engagements. Tholam's were the worst by far, a series of well placed shots had caught the salarian right at the start of the engagement but Arterius had immediately gone to his comrade's aid and applied a helping of medi-gel to the semi deep wound to Tholam's shoulder. It would need to be treated soon but James still had objectives.

Suddenly a pair of zetrians approached the squad's position. Both wore a black band around their right arm identifying them as part of the militia. "Sir, the mercenaries are falling back to the Stapali Corp Headquarters and the palace. The streets are almost ours. We did get a message from Captain Ivizzes he wants you to talk with him as soon as possible." The first of the two said to James.

"Good work," he turned to Tholam, "My man needs medical attention can you take him to the nearest field position?" James asked as the rest of his squad readied for a new deployment.

"Yes sir we'll get him there right away. Good luck captain."


	20. Finish Him

**Still trying to make the entire piece more dramatic, let me know if I'm getting there.**

**Crazy Note: Ok it got pretty crazy while writing this chapter up. Just couldn't really get from point A to point Z. Major Writer's Block I tell you. Ended up having to do it mystery style where I started with the ending and worked backwards. You should try it some times, really is interesting.**

**Beloraud**

**Kiorg**

**16 Hour, 23 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Eight of Operation "Abolitionary Rise"**

"**Endgame"**

The resistance fighter dragged his dead comrade away from the barricade. Over his head shells screamed through the air crisscrossing an intriguing pattern overhead. As the zetrian looked at the his one time friend staring lifelessly back at him the green furred being fought back a tear as he bit his lip and continued forward. Ahead the massive krogan captain scanned through a group of maps. As the beleaguered being approached the scaly leader he spoke.

"More casualties from East Street captain, the mercs there are pinned down but they're putting up a stiff resistance." The zetrian national spoke to the steely eyed alien.

"You did well soldier," Ivizzes paused for a moment examining the connection between the zetrian and his baggage. "A warrior must do all that he can. His sacrifice was not in vain."

The militia soldier nodded his head solemnly and then lay his friend down on the pavement before returning his attention to the battle before him. "Where do you need me sir?"

"Link up with fourth squad and get over to Comklav Avenue." Ivizzes growled as he checked the heat levels on his rifle making sure he was prepared for anything ahead. The zetrian nodded quickly and then

"What's the situation Ivizzes?" a human voice asked behind the krogan battle leader. Ivizzes turned to look into the hardened soldier standing before him.

"Fields," The krogan turned back to the maps continuing to examine his goal as James moved next to him. "The mercenary force has been divided between the palace and the Stapali Corporation. The good news is that for lack of a better term the planet is ours, every zetrian salarian and any other race are in a full uprising against the corp. Bad news, we can't order a payload dropped on these bastards holed up in their little fortresses. We have to do it the old way."

James nodded to his fellow captain and then looked over the maps. "What are the options? We didn't come this far just to get put off at the last minute of the game. We have to figure out some way to bypass a whole load of mercs." James asked him quickly trying to come up with his own plan of action.

"My mind is blank; Troaviel and O'Kreamer are still bogged down moving through the streets to link up with us. Those kill squads hit them the hardest, O'Kreamer lost two of her people and almost got cooked herself, Troav says his guys are pretty roughed up as well but they'll get to us soon." Ivizzes cracked and scar lips spoke as the two continued their scrutiny of the eventual goals.

"What about a sewer pipes? Old place like the palace might have some sort of waste transfer system." Joavn spoke up offering his input. The cohort member still had signs of his interrogation marking his face but James knew he could pull through.

"They did but they were set up with incinerators instead of a transferal system. They figured out it was more efficient just to cook up their crap." Bacek immediately shot the suggestion down.

"What about alarms?" Nina interjected. Ivizzes quickly scanned through the maps and then picked up a collection of documents that James recognized as the ones provided by Chaveninski.

"Tons of firewalls, the instant we enter the system, or the building then it goes into complete lockdown. No one in or out for 24 hours." Troaviel said as he approached the group. James eyed his comrade and noticed a splint on the turian's right arm.

"I didn't mean security alarms, I meant fire alarms." Nina continued. "Those incinerators if we create an unstable situation within the machines. A very unstable situation if you know what I mean." Nina said slyly as Troaviel joined the close huddle.

"Those alarms go off then we still get the system lockdown until someone gives the all clear in the high command centers." Ivizzes growled back at the human.

"Yes but we would still be able to enter the system, without setting off any more alarms. The alarms go off, the doors shut. We enter the building and fight our way to one of the main elevators. We get to high command and shut them down once and for all." James said turning back to his comrades.

Ivizzes folded arms parted in a bit of a half shrug. "I'm sure we'll need to get it a little more fine tuned than just that Fields. Things are never as simple as we think." The massive krogan continued. "Fields how soon can your troops be ready to go?"

James looked back to his motley crew with both concern and an executive eye. Tholam was out for at least the rest of the day, the others didn't look half bad, a few scrapes here and there but the majority of them were as ready as they'd ever be.

"Give us an hour and we'll be set to go. I need a temporary electronics specialist my main guy is headed for the nearest medical center." James answered sternly before waiting for Ivizzes' response.

"We'll have to finalize our plan of action." A slight beep issued from the krogan's ear. He quickly brought his hand up to the com link and listened for the reply. "Troav and O'Kreamer they'll be here in five. We make the final arrangements then."

**17 Hour, 15 Units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops purposes**

**Day Eight of Operation "Abolitionary Rise"**

Ritole brought up his omni tool quickly and noiselessly. As the yellow indicator lights started to flash and beep the zetrian technician entered into the headquarters security system and then turned back to James.

"Alpha this is Charlie we're set to go here as soon as we hear the noise." James said into his ear mike. He checked over his pistol while he waited for a response. His team minus Tholam was locked and ready to go once more clad in their jet black armored suits. He felt no apprehension from any in the group, they were ready to go. If they succeeded here they'd be able to end this once and for all.

Below them and underneath the main foundation of the headquarters building O'Kreamer led her half commando and half zetrian squad to mix a deadly concoction up in the main incinerator tunnels. Once the fire alarms sounded the building artificial intelligence would bring all systems to a standstill and completely lockdown the buildings. From there Ritole would infiltrate the systems to allow Charlie team a quick and easy path to the head office while keeping the main army of mercenaries locked and contained in the rooms they were currently using.

James ran his hand over the series of dents and bruises of his armored suit. The first mission of the operation had done a number on the ceramic plates but James thought it added a bit of honor to his entire whole. By the end of his work with the Cohort the soldier knew they'd be mere pebbles compared to some of the larger stones he'd have encountered. He just wished he knew for sure he was going to make it as far as to collect them. James shook the uncertainty away and then waited for the signal once more. Looking up slightly he saw Arterius looking back at him.

"What is it?" more a demand then a question, James decided he should rethink his tone with the turian since sooner rather than lather he'd once more be depending on Arterius to keep his head clear when the shooting started. Having hatred for you commanding officer wouldn't exactly keep him at his best.

"Sorry Captain, Lieutenant Collins says that Alpha says they'll ready in less than a minute." The turian said gruffly before moving past James as the captain continued standing against the darkness of the alley wall.

'You should make the effort to let things be, aggression never solves things it just makes them worse.' James shook his head slightly and then turned to the rest of his squad and spoke quietly.

"Lock and load squad, were gonna storm the doors in less than a minute." James muttered sternly. A few seconds later they felt the slight rumble of an explosion from below. "Ritole start earning that paycheck." He said to the technical expert.

The fur on the zetrian ruffled just a bit as his right had moved expertly through a series of command intruding into the system with ease and calm. He navigated the system through the backdoor the resistance had installed what felt like an age ago. Once inside he established the security algorithms and bypassed the lockdown protocols.

The heavy doors parted on the exterior and the squad entered into quickly entered into the area. The main corridor spanned then entire complex leading right up to the main elevator. James could already here the mercenaries as they slammed on the security doors as they tried to exit their temporary entrapments.

"We only have five minutes till the lockdown turns off. Let's move it." James said as the squad progressed up to the elevator. The black armored commandoes moved silently keeping their weapons trained on all the doors leading into their route. They entered soundlessly into the elevator as the seconds ticked by. As the doors slid shut in front of them James took recheck that all his gear was ready to go.

"Captain what are the rules of engagement if we run into the royals here?" Joavn asked inquisitively as James checked to make sure his grenades were easy to grab if the need arose.

"They're to be considered enemies of the state. Fire once fire upon, but try to take them alive if possible. James said as he folded up his rifle and withdrew his shotgun. A slight lyrical note chimed in the elevator interior and the doors opened. Their weapons kept unyielding as well as trained forward the commandoes once more moved into action. There was still two minutes till the lockdown was broken so they had to move fast. Up ahead three steel barricaded doors were at the end of the corridor. The ornate feel of them confirmed that they were the head offices. He clicked his mike once and then swept his right hand forward to the middle door. Ritole was instantly at the entrance and brought up his omni-tool. A few tiresome minutes passed by before the zetrian rose up.

"Boss these doors are running some kind of high end encryption unlike anything I've ever seen. The only way we're getting through is if whoever has access puts their palm on the print. The Tekor Bio Scanner can't be fool, at least with what I brought with me. We'll have to find someone who has access if we're going to get in here." The zetrian told the rest of the commandoes as he disengaged from the door locks.

"Try one of the other doors we're running out of time." James said quickly as he turned back down the hallway making sure their exit vector was still intact. Ritole nodded and then moved to the door on his right while the squad remained ready for anything. Ritole turned back to the human captain and gave him a thumbs up. James checked that everyone was prepared and then nodded back. The doors opened up and the shooting started.

The five inhabitants were completely caught off guard by the commandoes' entrance. James counted three salarians and two humans. Two of the large eyed beings were clad in the same military grad armor as the kill squad had been in while the third had what appeared to be a lavish purple dress by salarian standards. "How dare you!"

Arterius was first to fire, lancing through one of the armored salarians before his opponent had even crouched into a combat stance. James moved into the melee attack of the other salarian guard and brought his left hand into a swift uppercut into the small chin of the rough skinned mercenary. The being squealed as the blow connected and his form was lifted off the floor and sent crashing into the female salarian. The two fell backwards onto an ornate table as James moved to target the next foe. To his satisfaction his squad had already seen to the other two mercs. One was clutching a gaping wound just under his helmet while the other's helmet's was almost completely destroyed.

"Let me see your hands!" Bacek shouted to the cowering salarian. The unconscious salarian was pushed off and then another salarian appeared. The disgruntled being rose up and looked to the commandoes. "Who are you?" the turian asked sternly while keeping his weapon trained on his target.

"I am Queen Keliah Soirn and you have no right to be here." She said and Bacek and Cahleura cautiously approached her. "I will see you all brought to justice before this is over."

"Your highness we have more right to be here than anyone in this whole building." James said quickly as he moved back into the doorway while still keeping his eyes trained on the salarian queen. "We need access to the head office. Can you get us in there or not?"

"Why would I want you to gain entrance into the head office? Once the lockdown turns off I'm sure our security personnel will be more than happy to show you lot the doors. Good day." She put a twinge of anger on the last remark before she turned her back from the commandoes. Bacek turned to his captain and James nodded back at his comrade. The turian unholstered his pistol and grabbed the salarian's shoulder jutting the pistol's twin barrels into the small of the queen's back.

"Maybe you didn't here him; we need to talk with your son. Now!" the salarian turned slightly to the grim faced warrior.

"Fine but I have proposition for you. I want full immunity from whatever you think me and my family have done to this beautiful planet." James stared long and hard back at ruler before he continued.

"We'll see what we can do about that but first we have a little matter to deal with here. Can you open the door or not." James continued as they looked back at his mission clock. Just about one minute left before the doors opened. "We need to go now." The queen nodded and then followed the squad out. She quickly pressed her palm against the bio scanner and the door curtly opened to the head office. Just inside James saw their final target just ahead of them. "Greetings Prince Revok I think it's time we had a talk."

As the eight commandoes and one royal entered the room the salarian prince turned up to the newcomers. "Ah Captain Fields it good to finaly meet you, I was afraid I'd only meet you once you and your squad were slotted up in one of our morgues."

"Save it prince, we're here under the authority of the Citadel Council to bring you in. Peacefully or violently it's your choice." James said to the young salarian while also checking for unseen threats. All he saw was the prince but something was still keeping the ex marine on edge. "How's it gonna end?"

"Its going to end like this." The prince pulled a switch on the underside of the main desk and a panel on each side of the entrance pulled back and two krogan mercenaries rushed out to attack the commandoes. Sol'kahf caught the first punch right in the jaw while Bacek doubled over from the other krogan's biotic attack. Cahleura's hands glowed a brilliant blue and then she thrust her hand forward to the first attacker. The broulian and krogan were both lifted off their feet and sent crashing into the east wall. James rolled forward under the prince's first barrage of shotgun fire and then shot twice at the desk's legs causing it to pitch forward. The prince dove to the right as James continued his approach taking two steps up the table and then jumping after the prince.

Landing in a heap next to the salarian James saw that the prince's shotgun had left his hands and the Cohort member brought forth his own pistol to stare at the salarian as Revok tried to get himself up. "Freeze!" the salarian stopped for a second before James heard a crash behind him. Nina was pinned up against the wall by one of the krogans and James attention was momentarily shaken giving the prince the opening he needed.

The salarian's fist squared up against James' cheek bone and the human fell back to the ground loosing his pistol as he fell. James rolled to his right picking up his pistol as he went and then kneeled up and leveled his weapon back at the prince.

"Drop it." The prince said quickly with his powerful shotgun squared securely at James' face. James slowly let go of his pistol and raised his hands slightly. Behind him he did not hear any more struggling and then he heard a click on his head mike. Realizing his squad had beaten their massive attackers he spoke back to the prince.

"You don't have to do this Revok, Tell me who's pulling your strings and we can end this once and for all." James said to the salarian as he kept his eyes trained on the shaking shotgun still trained on his face.

"I wouldn't tell you even if I knew. You think I'm the one behind all this, hah!" the salarian uttered a quick laugh as he kept his shotgun trained on James and the squad. James eyed the powerful weapons and calculated his options. There was no way he could raise his weapon and fire at the ambitious salarian before he got toasted, but the squad had numbers on their side. The instant the prince realized that would hopefully guarantee his once chance to finish this.

"Your highness in case you've forgotten we're Citadel Military. We don't report in and someone is gonna start asking questions." He said calmly as the twin barreled weapon continued to lock on his person.

"Don't worry about that captain, my friends are quite powerful. I'm sure they won't miss you once my contacts relay that nothing has changed on my planet."

"Your planet, whatever they promised you won't change what's happening on the streets. You can't block it out any longer; the people will not stand idly by Revok. Listen to them." Even in the enclosed chamber they would feel the slight rumble of the drums as the riots grew louder and louder throughout the entire city. "It's too late my son, you have lost. Don't make it any worse than it has to be." The queen said suavely as she too grasped just how desperate the prince's situation was.

"It's not over its just beg…" He turned slightly to face his mother and then Sol'kahf made his move. Faster than James had ever seen him move he crouched low and grabbed at his right boot extending out a long jagged knife. Time seemed to slow down as the prince's eyes grew wide as the realization came to him. He brought the shotgun to bear on the tall broulian but the blade was already leaving Sol'kahf's skills hand. The whirling blade passed right by the barrage of faster than light pellets and then drove deep into the prince's chest. Blood spattered freely from the wound but the salarian's last shot would not be deterred either. The storm of anti personnel rounds tore into Sol'kahf's armor at his lower jaw.

"Secure him!" he ordered Bacek and Arterius as he approached the broulian. Sol'kahf's once smooth face was riddled from the attack. There wasn't much bleeding from his face but their appeared to be several punctures through his neck armor. Before he knew it Cahleura and Nina were beside him evaluating their squad mate's condition.

"What's his status?" James said turning back to the downed salarian.

"He'll never make it, the blade pierced right into the heart." Bacek replied as he pulled the blood soaked blade from its socket.

"James Sol is going to make it unless we leave now!" Nina said her voice corroded by urgency.

"Prep him for evac we're pulling out." James said to the two corpsmen as he stepped near the dying salarian prince and knelt before him. "Your time is up your highness. Tell me what I need to hear."

"You can't stop us." The prince coughed out with his last breath. His head fell to the floor and his pupils rolled upwards to stare off vacantly. James and Arterius lowered their weapons as they relaxed their stances. Bacek nodded to James letting his commanding officer know the prince was down for good and then James brought his hand up to his ear.

"Ivizzes we're done here, is our extraction ready to go?" James asked as he watched the queen move her son's corpse. He felt a twinge of guilt over all that had happened to her but then again she had many opportunities to stop this earlier and had failed to act.

"Roger James, we're brining the air speeder to the main window should be a little cramped but I think we'll do alright.

"It's truly sad that everything had to end this way. I truly believed hat I could convince him to come to a peaceful solution." The queen knelt down before her son's body examining it both with a bit of sorrow and contempt. She closed her son's eyes and then stood up to face the Cohort squad. "I will step down and relinquish all control back to the zetrians and the rest of the common people. I trust you'll pass on my compliments on your handlers. You truly are a force to be reckoned with. I trust I'll hear about you future exploits in a matter of…"

Gunfire erupted in the executive chamber. The queen was spun off her feet as her unshielded body was gouged by the rampant shells. Time seamed to slow down as the salarian queen fell to the floor. James brought up his rifle as he spun and knelt down. Before him a trio of enemy combatants stood against them.

Bacek was the quickest; he flung a grenade in the enemy's direction as he moved for cover. James fired at almost point blank range lancing through the first mercenary while Ritole was hit by a wave of retaliation fire. Arterius quickly closed with the nearest mercenary and unsheathed a knife from his crisscrossed bandolier. The turian brought the blade down across the assault rifle. The weapon fell from the mercenary's hands as the soldier of fortune brought up his hands in a defensive pose.

While comrades lashed against his opponent James rushed forward to meet his own adversary. The merc opened fire and the ex marine felt white hot pain on his arms as enemy fire ripped through his kinetic barriers.

The human warrior swung with his right hand forward catching the assassin in the lower part of his helmet. Even though his hand was heavily armored he still felt a stab of pain as his blow connected. His opponent uttered a slight yelp of pain as James continued and punched low into his enemies gut.

Suddenly a high pitched scream issued through the room and then something shattered behind them. Chancing a look back James saw the airship as it came to a halt almost halfway into the head office. "Everyone in now!" Ivizzes thundering voice shouted over the squad link.

James looked back to the masked attacker and kicked the merc right in the chest before he rushed up the airship's entry ramp. To his right Bacek hit a control panel on the ship's interior and the ramp shut behind them. Looking back once more he watched as the combatant rushed forward in an attempt to grab onto the airship. Bacek expertly aimed his pistol and fired at the masked mercenary. Two rounds hit the mercenary right in the neck and the attacker was flown back and landed in a heap on the ground.

The airship sped away from the headquarters into the night air. Nina and Cahleura were able to stop Sol'kahf's bleeding as they kept him propped up at a slight angle making sure their was no unequal dispersal of his blood or the medical stims they'd given him. Once they stabilized the broulian the two squad mates joined the rest of the team relaxing back against the ship's bulkheads. Taking a moment to check himself over the human captain realized just ho little of his armor still remained. James made a mental note to boost his shield strength the next time he went into the field. As he took off the final remnants of his armor off James looked out the large panes of transparent steel and watched as all over the banners of the Stapali Corporation were being stripped down and burned in huge bon fires throughout the city streets. All over zetrians and their fellow citizens celebrated as they threw off years of oppression with a massive celebration.

"Hell of a first mission Fields," Ivizzes spoke to James as the human eased back in his seat. Next to him Nina and the rest of the squad were already falling into a restful sleep. James decided it would be best to follow their suit and rested his head against the airship's walls as he closed his eyes.

Space is always comprehended as large, unending, and unconquerable. There is always a place where there is something but always are their places were there is nothing. Orbiting over a dark and lonesome planet a sleek medium size ship sailed through the blackness of space. It slowly came to a rest at its destination, a similarly designed space station that revolved ever so slowly. One being left the ship and moved swiftly down the ramp. The being, a lone human moved with precision and contempt through the dark corridors of the station till he stopped and stood before a massive circular door. Taking a moment to collect himself the human removed his helmet and then pressed his hand up against the scanner inset in the door. The large doors opened up and allowed his entrance and the lone figure stepped into the chamber.

Another lone figure stood waiting in the room and the human stopped exactly eight meters away from the waiting being. "Word from Beloraud, the salarian has failed us. It's just as you anticipated. I have not gotten word from 'Valkyrie' since I heard of the operation's collapse and sense that they have decided to try to avoid our retribution. I've already dispatched 'Grim' to deal with the situation and am awaiting the conformation."

The being he spoke to bow his head slightly and finaly spoke back to the other. "I smell Councilor Anderson's hand in this matter. Activate 'Nevis' tell them to deal with the objective that I set up for them. They will understand. Tell no one else."

The figure that had entered turned quickly and exited the chamber returning back to his ship to set things back in motion.


	21. Vigilante

**10 Hours 23 units. Date unspecified due to Black Ops Purposes.**

"Vigilance"

"Good to have you back captains; I'm sure you're glad to be returning to a stable environment." Nalick said as he welcomed the Cohort squads back onto the Citadel. The group exited the medium size passenger liner onto the large gangway in the commercial landing pad in the stations main entry terminal. James knew their missions were always going to be kept hush hush but he felt a little off not having at least some kind or recognition awaiting him when he arrived.

James returned his attention to the matter at hand and made sure the pair of JTOP officers were careful that Tholam was expertly ushered off from the vessel. The salarian technician was still heavily bandaged from the action on Beloraud and it would still be a few days before he'd be ready for any sort of action. Still it felt good to be home, or at least whatever the Citadel amounted in his mind. He figured they wouldn't be staying long though, James felt sure enough that JTOP intelligence would find out who was behind the Beloraud Conflict soon. He pushed the thoughts away as he followed Nalick down the gangway.

"Anything happen while we were gone?" he asked the blue skinned turian as the diverse group made it through the busy hustle and bustle of the massive terminal.

"Nothing really worth my intellect to divulge, the news still hasn't hit with the Beloraud situation but things besides that are still pretty stable. Some minor tax changes brought up by the volus ambassador and some new trade proposals between the turians and humans look like they're going to fall through. I was impressed with the initial report you and the rest of the captains made about the conclusion of your business on the planet. The general sent his compliments."

"He won't be at the debriefing?" James asked sharply to the taller alien being.

"No he's currently dispatched with another contingent of squads handling a border dispute at Nantwor. I'm working with XO Ecktar on assigning new tasks for the squads that aren't out in the field. Mainly supporting C-Sec with sting operations and the like but we're continuously getting reports from worlds close to Terminus systems that it seems as though there is a greater deal of unification between supposedly unaligned pirate clans. Of course we don't have the budget for a fleet of anything save transports so we're still running plans on just how to deal with this increase in activity. The think tanks are working non stop at new innovations but I haven't heard anything new for awhile."

"Business as usual then, we headed back to the headquarters?" James asked as the larger group split up between a four different elevators.

"For the time being, don't you even what a little downtime?" Nalick asked as he crossed his arms to the marine.

"I want to figure out who was pulling the stings at Beloraud. We didn't get the answers from the prince or the queen thanks to a few mercs on their last hurrah." James said as the elevator sped along its course navigating the intricate network of connection tunnels hidden throughout the Citadel. "You think Councilor Anderson has anything for us."

Nalick brought up his omni tool and scanned through a few messages on his screen before returning his gaze to James. "The council is holding a meeting at the moment. I'll leave a call at his office, anything else you need?" the turian asked as James stretched lazily in the small confines of the elevator.

"Nope I think I can find the debrief from here." He turned back to Nina and the rest of his squad. "Squad, find some mind numbing substance and take a breather. I'll send the word once I'm done with the debriefing." Bacek and the others nodded as the elevator doors opened and the group exited. The rest of the squad dispersed behind James and Nalick as they moved through the steel colored corridors of the JTOP headquarters.

The room had no identifiable door but somehow the individual appeared inside the small space. The room had banks of monitors as wells as a large weapon locker on the opposite side of the rows of info screens. The individual held his palm against a bio scanner which beeped softly in recognition. Done with security protocols he moved to the main computer where he checked for new messages from the extranet. One message from a regular address was waiting for him.

//Flash Transmission//…enter authentication key

Password accepted

Welcome N$2V&S

Target

Execute at your discretion. Target will be at Point XI till .

Allocated resources are on an attached file.

//End Transmission//

"We were planning to bring the queen back in for questioning but a group of mercs got the drop on us while we were dealing with Prince Revok. They could have been Cerberus guns but we didn't get a good look at them as we were extracting. We heard from contacts in the resistance that Masef took over as a patron ruler till a new form of government was established and that is pretty much the end of our mission in most respects." James finished as he stood in the main conference room once again.

"Thank you captain, I'll pass along your report to the general, in the mean time as I'm sure Nalick told you that the squads still stationed here will be routed into C-Sec for the time being. There has been a rise in criminal activity most notably in the wards and having some heavy hitters in their operation wouldn't hurt. I'll forward all the info to your home console." Officer Ecktar told James as they finished the debriefing and exited the chamber with Nalick following close behind.

"What's so bad in the wards that C-Sec needs help with?" James asked as they passed a group of JTOP security personnel.

"About week ago we started hearing talk that some big fish was calling the shots over a few of the groups throughout the wards. The reason it caught our attention is we kept tabs on the surviving members of Fists' crew. They were being recruited by this new guy so we started to figure in someone's looking for experienced muscle. Then suddenly the Kilvastone Conglomerate Bank got hit hard. Thirty bank employees were killed and another twenty three were taking hostage by an unknown number of attackers. C-Sec eventually tracked down to an industrial district on the east arm and found this." The turian brought up his omni-tool and brought up an image for James to examine. Dozens of bodies were scattered throughout the image each peppered with gun shot wounds that traced throughout their bodies. Without his experience of combat James would have been taken aback by the grotesque display, but as he was the soldier just stared back at the image before he asked a question.

"Any leads on what happened to the killers?" James asked as they continued along heading back to the elevator that had brought them to the headquarters roughly an hour before.

"No none so far, C-Sec is drawing a blank. But they did find that several of the bodies are those of supposed bank robbers. Initial reports are saying that it was a job gone wrong and that somebody didn't like the end payment. Figure their handlers tried to get the drop of them and messed it up. Anyhow figure we start there." Nalick said as the pair entered the elevator once more.

**Unknown Storage Area in the East Ward.**

"Yeah these four at least are wearing heavy armor. Got the look of freelancers for sure, no unification or uniforms did we check their weapons?" James asked one of the forensic officers on duty.

"These guys were good, we've made no trace so far but these are Mark IX Grimkors, experimentals from the Elanus Risk Control. Supposed to be out in a few months." The human officer said as he showed James the exotic weaponry. The weapon was comprised of a dark green material, had an almost archaic look to it. After a passive examination James returned it to the officer who'd presented it to him.

"I made a call to a contact I have in the corporation and they are quite positive that no one has gotten hold of their weaponry besides a few exclusive military contracts they have throughout Citadel space." Nalick replied coolly to his human counterpart. "You're thinking ex military contractors who weren't to antsy about giving back next gen weaponry?"

"No, any contracts that the ELC make are iron locked. They don't give out high spec weaponry like this to just anyone. I'm thinking more along the lines that these guys' arms dealer is a pretty good swindler with the corp." James said as he returned the weapon back to the forensic team member. "Still the question remains who was this other shooter. They obviously came too late to stop the slaughter, maybe revenge motive and went down shooting as many as he could." James continued as he dropped down to one of the bodies examining its wounds.

"No we checked all the bodies here, all the bank employees check out and none of the other corpses match known associates of any of the victims." Nalick said as he surveyed the area around them. Everywhere there appeared to signs of the shootout from the shell swamped walls to the occasional blood spatter. "James we need to move out soon. Forensics wants to finish up here so they can give the bodies to their respective family or friends."

James slowly rose up once more and then turned back to the turian judicator. "Put a call into your contact at the ELC lets find out if their missing some of their prototypes."


	22. Dead Leads

**--**Spring Semester is staring up again so this may be the last bit for awhile. Thanks to the continued supported of loyal readers and reviewers. As always feed back is greatly appreciated.

Also I made a mistake about the corporation mentioned in the last chapter. The corp is Elanus Risk Control and not the Elkoss Combine sorry for any confusion.

"_We need soldiers who get the job done no matter what the cost. I'm not saying we give them total authority but they need to be able to complete their work even at the cost of things we never thought we'd have to give up."_

Councilor David Anderson while addressing his fellow council members about the need for a new extension of Council Security.

**6 Hours. 14 Units. January 27, 2184AD**

'**The Red Bastion' Casino and Club**

His name was Eld Gelorte, born at Arcturus Academy to officers of the System Alliance in 2160. Eld kept his hair short, his beard well trimmed and his weapon ready. Tonight his expression remained calm and steadfast as he made mental notes of his surroundings. There were about forty individuals besides himself in the bustling entertainment center. About 13 were security personnel and another 5 were employees ranging from waitresses and bartenders. The rest were simply collateral for as much as he cared. He'd been doing his work for near a decade and had found it much easier to write off casulties as unlucky and he left it at that. He'd also been at the club for about two hours now and he knew he needed to beat the evening rush if he wanted to complete his task. Leaning on his barstool lazily a casual observer would spot him as a regular patron of the variety of drinks and concoctions that the 'Bastion' served but it was actually the first time he had ever entered the joint.

But the time for thought was over; the time for action had begun. James casually lowered his hand onto his belt and with drew a stripped down Stinger VIII Pistol and affixed it onto the underside of the bar. The next part of the plan would be the hardest.

'_The Execution of your objectives is always going to be your top priority. You must no longer think but react.' _

Wasting no time he pulled out a pair of heavily modified Reaper pistols and targeted the nearest trio of security guards.

The rounds shredded into the lightly armored guard detail before anyone realized just what was happening. Someone shouted an incoherent phrase as patrons everywhere leaped for cover as Eld continued. Whirling around in a perfect 90 degree turn he lined up the next wave of guards. In the .10 units since the start of the fight only one had managed to clear his gun from his holster. Eld took a precise moment for each shot making sure he wouldn't have to repeat himself. One shot pierced a guard's throat while the two secondary shots caught their respected targets in the high chest. Finaly the rest of the room started to move again. A pair of regulars sprinted for the exit just as the bartender reappeared from his hiding place with a fully charged shotgun. His first shot caught one of the fleeing beings while the other was expertly placed. The table right next to Eld shattered into a million pieces as he rolled away from the barrage. the wooden shrapnel zinged by his face as his body rolled away from the barrage. A close range shot like that could have easily ended his existance, Eld made a note of the fact that he had underestimated the bartender, a almost fatal error on his part.

When he finished his roll he pressed his back against the booth behind him as a new group of guards exited another doorway. Eld raised his long pistols and opened fire. One of the guards caught a burst in the face while the others dove for cover. The gunman fired a score of sporadic fire where the pair of guards hid but another barrage of shotgun fire alerted him that the bartender had located his position. Eld fired a few shots at the hiding rent a cops and then dove forward turning his entire body over while in midflight to face the bar once more. Two bottles exploded on either side of the bartender expelling their liquids all over the barkeep. As the salarian tried to duck for cover, Eld placed one shot into the large eyed alien's shoulder. The shot struck the liquor drenched garments and a fire erupted across the salarian's form. As the bartender screamed harshly Eld tucked his arms in and rolled his form twice arriving in a prone form well away from the guard's return fire.

_Knowing your surroundings can be the difference between life and death. coincedentaly it can mean the life or death of your enemies as well._

Another unfortunate patron was caught in the cross fire as the guards tried to throw as much fire as they could at the assailant. Eld kept low as he moved from table to table trying to keep whatever cover between him and the security shooters. Shots splattered across his kinetic barrier. The portable shield had cost him nearly all of his stock in Synthetic Insights, but it was worth every credit. He shoved over a larger table and rested for a moment while he went over the numbers once more. 4 civies were out, three staff, and at least seven guards were down for the count.

The pistols were at half their heat capacity before they would overheat. Eld made sure his shields were starting to recharge before he moved again. Four new thugs emerged just as Eld moved from cover once again. This time he stood at full height allowing for better mobility. He ran a preplanned course through the club that he'd mentally outlined the moment he'd entered the den for gambling and substance.

Eld ran four steps forward firing as he came. Another guard flew backwards twin mass accelerated pellets easily piercing his neck piece. Rounds splintered the one time exquisitely carved tables and chairs as the shooter navigated his way through the 'Bastion'

5 more shots and three more guards fell to the matte black floor. A warning sound issued from both pistols just as Eld arrived at the bar stool he had just vacated. Dropping both of his sleeker weapons he leaped over the bar lowering his right hand to grab the smaller weapon as he went. More drink containers exploded all around him but Eld was safe from anything but the luckiest shot. he was pressed up against the bar's fridge and even if the guards brought the heat it would be a while before they could work through both the bar and the compartement. Safe behind the metallic bar the human grabbed a pair of grenades from his belt dispenser and then counted off a four half units. At the forth numerical he hurled both grenades back over the bar and then rose up again. The grenades exploded just as he leveled his weapon at his first target.

The explosive and concussion force lifted two of the guards off their feet causing one to fall through a table while the other was plastered against the wall. The remaining two guards turned to escape the gunman's fury but two snapshots from the Stinger collapsed both to the floor. With no other immediate threats Eld started to breathe and think again. He holstered his holdout pistol and collected one of the dropped Lancer rifles and checked its heat level to make sure it was ready to go.

Keeping the captured weapon at the ready Eld finaly moved to his true target. The door that most of the guards had entered through was now sealed against him but one locked door would not deter someone of Eld's skills. He swiftly brought up his omni-tool and linked it up with the door's security panel.

It took him less than a minute to break the security protocols and soon enough the door slid open ready to grant him an entrance. He entered in and found his contact and his remaining three bodyguards waiting for him in the small office.

"You have exactly one unit to leave before my lackeys beat you to a pulp." The larger than average turian warned Eld, every person had their weapons trained and ready on the gunman.

"Your bodyguards have exactly half a unit to decide whether they want their pension plans or having their wives cash in on their insurance." Eld replied coldly to the waiting guards.

The guards kept their weapons trained on Eld but one, a fellow human turned slightly between his employer and his target. The momentary lapse was all that Eld needed. His pistol was firing a split second before the thought fully registered in his mind. The shots lanced forward instantly killing the flincher, the other two guards and the target opened fire as Eld rushed forward. As the rounds roared around and past him he practically fell into the nearest merc. As the hired gun faltered Eld dropped his hold out pistol and looped his hand around the guard's gun hand. With his left hand he held the guard's fingers firm against the rifles trigger while he used his right arm to aim the captured weapon. The adjacent guard took the brunt of the attack in the face and then Eld brought his left elbow up into the chin of his captured foe.

The guard dropped and Eld fired one shot at point blank into the man's head before he snapped the rifle back to target the turian.

"Please I have money, guns, power. I'll give you anything." The turian gun dealer

managed to say as he stood trembling under the sights of Eld's weaponry.

"Save it, you made your decision when you sold the guns to a bunch of mercs. Your choice, your death." He pulled the trigger and finished his objective. As the turian dropped like a stone Eld checked his timepiece. The entire engagement had lasted less than three units. Good not great but decent enough. He dropped his captured weapon and promptly exited the bar. It was time to report in, and he was never one to keep his employers waiting.

**7 Hours. 00 Units. January 27, 2184AD**

**Elanus Risk Control, Citadel Office.**

"Nalick it's good to see you, you still running errands for the ambassador?" the black skinned turian asked as James and Nalick entered into the grey hued office. James felt reminded of a medical operation room. Everything was pristinely clean and nothing seemed to be their without purpose, even the light fixture had two security cameras mounted on it.

"No they promoted me to a judicator, I still run errands but for the different branches of the Council military. This is my friend Captain James Fields; he's part of one of the new JTOP regiments. James this is Visaq Ceivus, a long time design lead for the ERC" Nalick said as James grasped Visaq's outstretched hand.

"Good to meet you, Nalick always kept interesting company beI trust this has something to do with what you asked me earlier about those Grimkors?" Visaq asked inquisitively. Nalick had always known the ERC to keep shrewd individuals on their payroll but Visaq was a league above the rest. Nalick had met the gun maker on an indictment against a client of the ERC at least a decade ago. The client had played hardball and decided to make sure Visaq didn't relate any of his business to the one time C-Sec officer. Nalick had saved Visaq's live during the process and thus earned a good friend in one of the more powerful industries in Citadel space.

"It has everything to do with them. The captain here says that the issue might be that a shipment of the weapons was liberated from one of the ERC's storehouses. Now I understand why the company wouldn't want to make such an issue public knowledge but for the purpose of our investigation we need to know if it's happened."

Visaq clasped his tri fingered hands together thinking over the entire conversation, examining all faucets of the subject and then looking back up from his desk to his fellow turian. "Alright, what I say here doesn't leave the room. About a month ago we had three storehouses on different planets all report an almost simultaneous power outage. Soon after we received the standard chatter from the warehouses but something about the transmissions triggered some kind of internal affairs alarm and investigatory teams were dispatched to each complex. They found the storehouses cleaned out and the staff gone. The chatter we received was actually being made by a rudimentary artificial intelligence program."

It took James a moment to fully register what the turian was saying. "You're saying that these thieves, after breaking into a high tech security warehouse and stealing experimental weapons, leave a highly illegal AI program to keep up the charade that the warehouse is operation as normal as ever that seems a little far fetched do you think?" James said as he grinned slightly toward Visaq.

"About as far fetched as an entire Alliance Battle group being destroyed by some unknown technology." Nalick said bringing James back to reality. "Truly these events are not our usual staple of events but we need to deal with it nonetheless.

"Wait an entire Alliance.." Visaq started before James interrupted him.

"You think the two are related?" the ex marine asked as he mulled things over.

"Think about it, a group of starships is decimated without a return shot being fired. Soon after a cache of experimental weaponry is stolen from several high security warehouses and no one can figure out how it happened. Somebody somewhere has got to know something about this. These sorts of things don't happen without a lot of muscle to boot."

"Speaking of which I heard a rumor that some of the higher ups hired a free lancer to track down who's responsible, last I heard their guy was getting close." Visaq appraised his colleagues as he opened up his desk terminal.

"Got a name or just a shadowy description?" James asked quickly as he leaned forward in the plush chair.

"They say this guy is as good as the shadow broker. No names, no family, no nothing. I will say that he's not the most subtle of people." Visaq turned up to Nalick. "You've got pull in C-Sec keep your ear to the ground listen for anything in particular." Now I have another appointment," Visaq stood up and extended a hand. "Always an interesting time my friend."

Nalick nodded curtly as the pair exited the office space. They passed a pair of waiting voluses as they exited the office. "You think he's holding out on us." James asked as they exited onto the presidium once more.

"No Visaq was never one to lie to old friends, its how he keeps his contacts throughout both the lighter and darker side of the law. He didn't give us much but he gave us enough to go on." Nalick replied as they passed by pedestrians on the busy walkway.

"Let's check out the C-Sec Academy see if we can figure out who this mystery assassin is." James said as they passed the Ambassador offices.

Nalick nodded and was about to bring out his com unit when the device pinged, the turian brought up the instrument to his ear. "Judicator Nalick here, yes. When did this happen? We'll be right there." He turned back to James as he diverted their course to a nearby elevator. "C-Sec just ringed we got a whole load of homicides at the 'Red Bastion' Club. Thing is the owner of the club apparently had a lot of things going on for him after Fist was finished. Officer in charge says we better get there fast." He said as he the two entered the elevator and headed back to the wards.

"Last time I saw something like this it was the work of a soon to be named Spectre." The salarian officer on the scene told the two investigators as they entered. The two entered into a seen of destruction and ruin. Everything that once made the 'Bastion' one of the more enjoyable dives had been shredded or decimated. The entire place was riddled and pockmarked by what appeared to be armor piercing rounds hell bent on turning the place into a candidate for one of the Citadel's remolding programs. James ran his hand along the once pristine bar and part of it broke apart under the mere pressure of his hand.

"Yeah I remember hearing something about that when I was still in the marines. Hell hath no fury like a-"

"Captain you I think I found something over here." A C-Sec officer said warranting the human's attention.

James nodded in the speaker's direction and moved to his discovery .he entered into a small room set apart from the club. Inside a few bodyguards as well as the club owner lay dead. Once more James found the security officer holding up one of the experimental Grimkors as he waited for the captain to arrive.

"Only the body guards had them, great good it did for them." The turian remarked as James looked over the weapon.

"So the guys at the bank, this was their contact. I bet the entire station that the ERC guy was behind this. Makes sense, they figured out who's sold the weapons so they get rid of him make sure there's no trace. Back to the ERC office then?"

"Not quite," Nalick stopped him as the turian appeared to his side. "One of the surviving wits identified the guy. We loaded the description into the C-Sec surveillance. Our shooter just headed into a warehouse in the wards not far from here. I think it's time we get some answers."


	23. New Harbinger

**Author's Note. **_Thanks to all those who continue to read. As always reviews and critiques are welcome._

"_The Reapers are a completely artificially intelligent race. No one knows who created them or even when they were created, but evidence points us to the thought that they even predate the Protheans. Very little is known besides the fact that all contact with Reapers at the present time have either been hostile or soon to be hostile. And they are not above using any means to attain their ends, their ends being the complete annihilation of all organic life as we know it."_

_­_The Dawn of the Reapers Synopsis byDoctor Liara T'Soni,

**14 Hours . 11 Units. January 27, 2184AD**

**Warehouse Zeta 33 **

James and the rest of Seventh Squad waited near the outside of the warehouse facility. Millions of the large storage spaces dotted each individual ward, but this one was different. According to the C-Sec records the warehouse was maintained by a small food processing company owned by a joint salarian and human corporation. Besides the ownership rights, the report had shown that the warehouse had not been paid for in the past five years. This sort of thing was not uncommon with C-Sec spread out as it was but the fact that surveillance had seen their target entering the building meant there was more than just an empty building waiting them.

James was glad to see Ritole was keeping cool about the new mission. Tholam would be cleared for active duty in a few days so James had asked the Zetrian to stay along with the squad till Tholam had a clean bill of health. Ritole had eagerly agreed just for the chance to see the Citadel and now wore the same black armored suits that were the standard of Cohort operations.

Besides the Cohort squad there were about twenty C-Sec officers put together last minute to make sure that the gunman didn't escape from their grasp. Nalick and the security officers were going over the building blue prints projected by the portable projector one of the C-Sec officers had brought.

"We'll enter here, through this side entrance and stay at observation. The target is extremely skilled at close to medium range combat but he could have skills beyond that we haven't learned of. Orders are to take alive if possible but he needs to dealt with one way or another." The turian judicator said as he ran his talon ended hand across his chin as he continued to examine the plans. "Once we ascertain the situation we will come up with the appropriate action. Captain is your squad ready?"

James finished securing his rifle and turned to the rough faced turian. "We're all set here judicator, just going over last minute details." As Nalick nodded in his direction James turned back to his squad. "Alright Arterius you and Ritole will be posted on the north east entrance as a fall back, we don't want him slipping through the noose we got him in but like the judicator said. Keep your wits about you, this guy is a step up from any of the mercs or even the Cerberus troops we ran into on Beloraud so be ready." He got nods from the secondary group and then turned back to the rest. "Everyone else sticks we me, soon as we have a confirm, on the target we go in the main entrance. Bacek and Sol'kahf already got the door wired so all we have to do is finish the job. Let's get ready."

James and Nalick watched over the projector as the image changed to show a group of individuals talking in the expansive warehouse. The image was on a direct link to the pair of C-Sec officers that were observing the exchange via a hidden location near the roof of the building. The screen showed at least twenty eight individuals, twenty seven of which appeared to heavily armed and ready for anything. The image zoomed in with a slight whir of a motor and then one of the handlers boosted the audio receiver.

"…had nothing to do with it. You told me to get rid of him so I did, that was the job and that's exactly what I was paid to do." One of the speakers said. The image was still being calibrated to the dark space and the beings appeared little more than tall shadows against a white backdrop.

"We paid you to make it look credible, that meant coming close to killing him not actually killing him. You don't realize the value he had with the organization." The second speaker replied harshly to the first.

James realized the most probable reason for the argument was the death of the gun dealer was not part of their original plan but it didn't make sense. Visaq had said the ERC had hired someone to deal with the leak. The gun dealer had been part of it but this didn't sound like a job well done speech at all.

Nalick put his hand to his head mike and spoke clearly. "That's him prepare to blow the door." But James held up his hand

"Wait something's not right about this deal. Hold off for a few." The human said trying to gain a better understanding of just what was going on in the warehouse.

Slowly Nalick gave in to the soldiers call for patience and brought up his hand once more. "Hold up, the captain thinks something else is going on."

"Yes I know just how important he was but think of it this way; he messed up by selling the weapons to those beggars in the wards. Doesn't matter how little a mistake it was but it could have come back to us. You know that." The first speaker replied and then awaited the response of his comrade. During the lapse in time the image finaly cleared enough revealing a short haired and small bearded human easily identifiable as the gunman from the club.

"You are right my friend, once again I bow before you wisdom but we must not delay long. Word has come down that soon those bastards from the JTOP that ruined the operation at Beloraud will be dealt a stinging blow. They say they want the weapons loaded and off the Citadel before the next week." Just as the first speaker had been shown his true form so was the same for his ally. A white skinned turian with angular black markings appeared in stark contrast to his compatriot. Instantly one of the C-Sec officers ran the face in their databanks to find a match.

"Very well once you leave the station I'm sure that we will meet up once more when they deem it wise. Good luck my friend." The human and the turian clasped each other by the forearm and then parted ways. The human went off alone while the turian and his body guards started moving to their respected exits.

"Alright do it now! Blow It!" James shouted as he raced to the insertion point. A 0.30 unit countdown appeared on his helmet HUD as he regrouped with the squad. Taking out his rifle he eyed the door as the charges mounted on it continued to wind down. He heard Sol'kahf utter a quiet phrase as the broulian kept his hands ready on his twin blades. The countdown hit zero and the door flew off its hinges, James managed to shout "Go" just as he entered the warehouse.

The members of the Cohort burst through the wide doorway firing as they went. The faster than light bullets first pinged off the heavily armored foes' kinetic barriers. All the thugs were light on their feet thought easily moving to cover once they realized what was going on. There was little to cover though, only a few scattered containers with unidentifiable labels dotted the immediate area and two thugs were instantly put down. James spotted the gunman turn to face the JTOP squad as the battle ensued.

The human had a large jacket that hid a set of sleek gray armor, the design of which James couldn't identify. The gunman withdrew two long pistols from twin holsters and opened fire in James' direction. Actual ballistic rounds tore into a C-Sec officer near the squad leader as he shoved away a thug in his way. Two rounds screamed by him tearing deep gashes into his shoulder plates as James leveled his rifle pushing his mind clear through the pain. Just as he pulled the trigger the original turian speaker appeared in front of him swinging his shotgun towards James.

James moved his rifle up and the blow glanced off James defense gamble. The two weapons clang loudly together and fell from both opponents hands as James stood at full height toward his turian adversary. The white skinned being changed his profile into a defensive posture waiting for James to make the first move. His arms still aching from the heat pulsating through them the marine decided to go with the alternative. He crouched low and kicked out slashing across the turian with a well placed blow a little way under where James suspected his foe's knee cap was.

The turian agent was caught off balance by the low strike and as he kneeled from the blow he let a slight howl of pain escape his lips. Suddenly a blade was in the turian's right hand and as his foe regained his balance he shot forward intent to plunge the blade deep into James' chest. James turned to his right and shifted his weight in unison evading the blade as the turians attack just missed him. James tried to grasp onto the arm but his hand movements were still clumsy and slow as he tried to catch the attack. The turian brought back the blade slashing it across James' armor piercing the ceramic plates. The marine recoiled against strike and the prepared for the follow up when gunfire erupted all around him. The turian's face and body snapped back as Nina's burst of fire was silenced. Keeping her face calm she nodded once in James' direction as he got up to reexamine the battle. The hired guns were all still shooting but each was slowly attempting to pull back to an entrance while keeping up waves of fire to pin down the advancing C-Sec officers.

Distracted by the forward advancing security officers the thugs were caught completely off guard when Arterius and Ritole along with their compatriot officers rappelled down through the top of the warehouse and closed off all escape for the thugs. About two thirds of the mercs realized their odds and dropped their weapons but at least six continued to fight back against the enforcement officers. Once more James caught sight of the gunman as his target. The fleeing criminal realized the conventional exits were closed but he had obviously planned ahead. The homicidal assassin brought forth a small detonator and depressed the trigger.

The entire space rocked violently as part of the south wall exploded. Fragments of flack and rubble flew everywhere as the new entrance appeared for the enemy troops. Those that had surrendered their weapons made a last ditch effort to break free of the C-Sec officer s but for many the shackles were already in place. The unchained however took their chance. James took off after the gunman even as other thugs ran beside him trying to escape with their own skins. As he came up on one goon he whipped his rifle forward and clanged it against a metallic helmet but the blow was a bit awkward and James lost his main weapon in the process.

His target was close to 10 meters ahead and had cleared the large gap in the wall. The area around the warehouse was desolate and decrepit but if his target made it into the denser area of the wards James would be in trouble. As he continued sprinting forward doing his best to keep his target in sight James brought his hand up to cup his head mike.

"Squad I'm in pursuit of priority one stay with the judicator and tell him to alert C-Sec control with visuals of the target." He shouted into his mike as he ran as fast as his suit could take him.

"Roger that boss, soon as we lock it down here we'll rendezvous ASAP." Bacek's cool voice replied sharply to him as he dodged an overturned dumpster blocking his path. The gunman turned a corner and disappeared from James' vision. The JTOP agent unholstered his pistol and held his back up against the wall. Catching his breath for a moment James readied him and then rounded the corner.

A blank street answered his gaze as he rounded the corner. His eyes twitched quickly from point to point trying to find his target but here was no one to be seen. Then suddenly a sound pierced the silence and James instinctively brought his pistol up to the sound. His target had reappeared but did not seem to be aiming at James. He instead seemed to be aimed directly as the balcony above James' head. The ex marine caught a glimpse of muzzle flare and then heard the round rip through the air around him and the under side of the balcony evaporated in a storm of gunfire. James had no time to move and was immediately pummeled by the falling ruble.

Eld let a small smile cross his lips as the smoke from his twin pistols finaly ceased. The smoke from the failed balcony however continued to flow as if giving a unique salute to its victim. Satisfied that at least part of the operation was still savable Eld took off for the nearest presidium access to get things in motion.

**15 Hours. 36 Units January 27, 2184AD**

**Citadel Tower**

**The Council**

"We still need to give Shepard more time. If there's anything, any chance that we can find a way to keep the Reapers from ever coming back I think allowing for a solution to present itself is the wisest decision." Anderson replied back to his fellow councilors. Inside the presidium words were flying once again with the newest discussion about the Reapers and nothing of any use was finding its way into the conversation.

"It's not easy for me to say this," the turian councilor replied cautiously. "But I believe he is right," he waved his hand around the space encompassing the asari and salarian representative. "We almost died because of the firepower of primarily one Reaper vessel. It shames me to say that the defenses we put in place were almost futile in their respects." He turned to the asari councilor and slowly nodded his vote. She in turn looked upon lone scientist that had presented the newest idea.

"The Council will not support any directive past and present to open the Citadel Gate. The issue may be reviewed upon with new evidence but with our current knowledge of what opening the gate would bring we stand by our decision. This meeting of the Council is adjourned."

"No! You will listen to me; we've seen what these things can do its inconceivable that anyone will ever find a way to stop the Reapers. And you know the facts there's no fleet that could even begin to destroy it if they come in force. Our only means of survival is to attempt negotiations, reach an agreement." Dorin Roetes, the one time respected archeologist said as he continued his plea. It was the salarians forth plea of the month and the Council's patience had run its course.

"There is no agreement to be had Doctor Roetes, the Council has spoken." The turian representative responded curtly and then signaled the pair of waiting C-Sec officer. The turian security leader nodded and then approached with his team to escort the doctor out. The trembling doctor didn't struggle and walked away from the Council area his escort keeping in close formation. The turian C-Sec officer in charge of the unit spotted a female human wearing the uniform of the JTOP office. Disengaging from his squad he met with the officer and her squad whom for some peculiar reason no doubt were in full battledress.

"Can I help you Captain O'Kreamer?" the turian asked as the orange haired women acknowledged him. His eyes traveled through the heavily armed group and then fell on the human captain.

"I'm looking for judicator Nalick I heard he was on assignment." O'Kreamer asked sharply.

"It's my understanding he's coordinating a mission with Captain Fields down in the wards is it urgent?" the security agent replied.

"JTOP just intercepted several encrypted transmissions ending up in an unknown location here on the presidium. They are only partially decrypted but they allude to the Council and in specific Councilor Anderson. Our CO ordered us to relay it the judicator and link up at the council's whereabouts." O'Kreamer replied her eyes continually tracking the different individuals near the stairway leading to the council. For the moment there was only the squad of C-Sec officers and a few dignitaries awaiting their appointments. A quick check would clear the dignitaries but besides that everything looked secure. "I'll need to check out all appointments with the council as well as your men and any others currently on assignment."

"I assure you my men know their task. The Council is in quite capable hands." And without warning he individual known only as Nevis brought up his shotgun and fired into the human captain. As he opened fire on the scattering remnants of the JTOP squad he continued. "Very Capable."


	24. The Equation

**20 Hours. 04 Units January 27, 2184AD**

**JTOP Headquarters**

**Medical Ward**

_'Great job Fields, not only did you get yourself killed but you just got everyone else killed too.' _

System Alliance Drill Instructor Avodz addressing recruit Fields over his latest training simulation.

White. White blinding light. But it told him something, it told him he was alive. James blinked his eyes once more trying to cope with his new surroundings. His eyes finaly adjusted to the light and he was able to recognize just where he was. Some kind of medical examination room. Several IVs were set up in his right arm and a quick glance at the monitors told him he wasn't in any immediate danger. Slowly getting himself out of the bed he put the IVs on a wheeled stand and moved out of the room. He entered into a small waiting room and found a familiar turian waiting for him.

"You got out faster than I figured Fields, doctors were saying it'd take at least a day before you even woke back up." The JTOP instructor Tiberius said calmly as he stood up to meet the human.

"Not that it isn't good to see you sir but I was expecting someone else. Seventh squad catch the crook?" he asked though he was pretty sure he knew what the answer would be.

"No we haven't seen or heard anything more about him. Wasn't your fault James," he rested a hand on the captain's shoulder. "This guy is one of the best, we came up with a possible ID. Eld Gelorte." With his Omni-Tool Tiberius brought up a picture of his target. "Bastard has gotten through a lot more than just a C-Sec sting operation. He was born at Arcturus to unknown naval officers, ending up becoming sort of an adopted child to a lot of the people there. Learned just about everything from combat to astronavigation, quite the learner at least according to the records we were sent. After he graduated he went off the grid, sounds a whole lot like maybe he got recruited by some spec ops program but he reappeared not long ago working as an exclusive assassin. He's been identified as the key suspect in the Dractkus case a year ago."

James thought back and remembered the news report of the soon to be turian councilor's death. Dractkus had made many enemies through his political career and it ended up costing him his life. The news footage of the scene had not been pretty.

"My point is this guy is not run of the mill, next time we'll make sure he pays the price." Tiberius continued as he closed up the image.

"If there is a next time," James said letting his thoughts escape his mouth before he realized. The turian gave him one hard look and the bowed his head slightly.

"While Gelorte's escape is a pressing issue there's one that's of even greater concern. There was an assassination attempt on Councilor Anderson's life just after you got buried." A look of mixed confusion and terror crossed James' face as the words rebounded throughout his skull. "Early reports are sketchy but it seems a false security team was responsible for the attack. They were well trained and extremely well coordinated. Our intelligence here got wind of it just before it happened, O'Kreamer was sent up before the attack happened to guard the council. She told the leader of the false group that JTOP had figured them out and she was killed soon after."

Again the words drove into James like daggers, O'Kreamer, gone. They'd lost some people on Beloraud before, even Tholam was close to joining them at one point but this was different. What if things had been different, his squad at the headquarters sent to deliver the message. He could have stopped it, but he just as easily could have faced the same fate. All these thoughts ran their course again and again but it didn't do anything to solve the pain now returning to his mind. He started to feel faint.

"Easy Fields, take a deep breath. I know O'Kreamer's death is not something you can easily work through. She was a great warrior and she will be missed but I need you focused or more people are going to die on our watch."

Tiberius' words struck hollow in James' mind as the thoughts continued to flow. What if it'd been Bacek, or Sol'kahf or Nina. He could have lost all of them in one fell swoop and...

"Captain Jameson Fields! Stand at Attention!" a bellowing voice shouted in the small space. Compelled purely by instinct James snapped to attention despite the pain still reminiscent in his body. His vision clearing now, he saw that Officer Ecktar had joined Tiberius and both started intently toward him.

"Captain what did you do before you ever took a step into the unit?" the battle scarred asked.

James lifted his chin as high as he could will it and spoke clearly. "I took an oath to safeguard the Citadel and all it's citizens and holdings, even if I should die that others will live in freedom." He recited as he remembered the solemn pact.

"Yes, not something to be taken lightly now is it? Soldiers die Fields, you know that. It's something we all must do but the fact that it's someone else instead of us makes it seem even worse than if it had been us. Yet if we can't bring ourselves to continue that their loss is for nothing. Do you read me soldier?"

"Yes. Yes sir." James replied coarsely almost having to spit out the words.

"Good, I'm bringing in all the squads stationed on the Citadel to a quick briefing to discuss the recent events. I expect you to be ready to when they arrive."

An hour later Seventh squad and several other squads returned to the Headquarters and found their captain waiting for him. The mood was as dim as James had ever seen it, no jokes no congratulations or pats on the back. Almost no emotion as far as he could see but it fitted. Loosing so many during the attempt on the councilor's life was the Cohort's single greatest casualty on record, only one of O'Kreamer's troops had survived the firefight and they were in critical condition as it was. James himself had a sling supporting his right arm and had just managed to escape using a brace for his left knee.

"Listen up everyone its time to step back and look at the larger picture." Ecktar said from the center of the briefing room. "We have a failed assassination on one of the councilor and C-Sec comes up cold of everything. No traces no suspects no nothing. And we have a top class assassin still at large somewhere on the Citadel. I know a lot of this was out of your hands and what I'm asking is to come up with some ideas. Put yourself in their shoes and figure out motive plan and exit vector. Figure out what is the next link in the chain. We're still currently on assignment with C-Sec but other than that this is our only priority, get to it. Dismissed." Ecktar said as he left the group to their task.

"Oh James I forgot to tell you, that turian Nina worked over with a shotgun," Bacek told James as the squad sat huddled together at one of the over cramped restaurants in the Wards. "Turns out he works for the ERC, I ran his ID through Visaq. Name is Crolan Yo'Tauros, turns out he's an executive for their R and D department but he's been off the grid for awhile now. Headquarters is keeping him in a medical induced coma until they can fix up his nervous system." The rough leathery face turned Nina and grinned. "Next time, aim low will you Collins." Nina smiled at her squadmate's assessment and then flagged down the asari server.

"So a bunch of high grades are stolen from an ERC storage, we hear from our contact that their high ups got an outsider to track down who was responsible. Then next thing we know this outside contractor meets up with an ERC executive in a dark alley. Doesn't add up to me, why they wouldn't just do a meet at one of the offices." Bacek said as his sharp eyes skimmed through the menu's contents.

"Maybe they wanted to be discreet; I know one too many jobs that got botched because we chose a bad drop off location." Gerick said as he ushered a glass one of the restaurant's signature drinks know as the 'Raider's Plight'.

"But the exec was saying something about an organization. He was talking about that dead club owner and how valuable he was. That meeting we came to wasn't about a lost weapons cache, they were talking about a cover up." James said the realization came to him. "We need to get that exec talking. Arterius go check up on our friend and then check in on Tholam

The turian nodded curtly and then exited the area. "I still don't get why you have grief with him, it's been so long now." Cahleura said in her luxurious voice.

"You wouldn't exactly be chumming it up with someone who's first response to you was a punch square in the jaw now would you." James replied promptly to the comment.

"In some Broulian tribes that is a way of establishing ranking when visiting another tribe. Course it can be a painful reminder of who's in charge." The furred being said chuckling slightly to himself.

"Cahleura I'm sure in time they'll kiss and make up or we'll have to pick up the pieces. Either way it will be one helluva show." Gerick muttered as he ordered up another round.

"I don't know Gerick. Cap has taken multiple gunshots and a whole balcony. I think he could teach the kid a thing or two about fighting." Bacek said as he tried out his own drink.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Bacek, but we still need to figure out just how everything is connected. That hitman Gelorte chatting with Yo'Tauros about some weapons being moved out of the Citadel. Then we have a fake security team hounding for the councilor's blood." He said as he tried to come up with the solution in his mind.

Suddenly his com unit beeped and James immediately tapped the mike in his ear. "Fields here." His squad mates turned in his direction as the captain listen to the speaker's words. Within a minute he put turned off the device and turned back to the group. "Time to move guys. Guess our pall Yo'Tauros is awake. And he's none too happy that that Gelorte guy just abandoned him.

Nevis returned to his private armory. The turian assassin replaced his weaponry on the storeroom walls, before he returned to the communications equipment. Logging in he checked for any forwarded messages. Seeing none Nevis immediately made his own report. It took him a millisecond to come up with the correct wording; it had been so long since he wrote a message with this particular theme.

T

FNVS

Primary failed. Trap was sprung early. Rabbit got away. Awaiting new orders. Recommendation of action MTGM. Sources confirm patriot may be at risk. N out.

Satisfied with the message Nevis inserted the encoding and security protocols before sending it out. It would be a bout a standard hour before his handler read the message and an hour after that, Nevis believed he would be far away from his current location.

**20 Hours. 62 Units January 27, 2184AD**

**JTOP Headquarters**

**Medical Ward**

Crolan Yo'Tauros had more medical gizmos connected to him that James could identify. Bacek had been right, Nina should have aimed lower. The turian's entire face was dotted with shot wounds while various medical attachments completed the scary visage. What little breathing James could hear came out in long rasped of force air. Still if he was gonna get any answers to what was going on it was going to be from the being lying before him.

"Mr. Yo'Tauros I'm Captain Fields from JTOP. I was wondering if you might be in the mood to let us in on some of what's going on these days." James asked dully as he began very calm and restricted. The turian was in no shape for a battle of the minds and James knew angering him wouldn't be the best course of action either.

Eventually a voice did reply to him but the words were so soft that it took James a moment to register them. "I know you. One of your goons shot me full in the face before I could take you down."

"You'll have to excuse me if I don't wish things would have gone down differently." James joked as the turians hissing and rasping continued.

Before words formed again James thought he heard a few laughs emanating from the wound ridden executive.

"Of course. Now what exactly did you want to know before I start seeing all these machines being turned off." Yo'Tauros muttered to James as he regained his breathing pattern.

"We're not barbarians if we wanted you dead we could have left you to rot with your friend Eld Gelorte." James said testing out his subject as he continued. "Yeah we know all about him, how he was hired to fix up a problem that doesn't exist. I'm here to find the one that does. With him dead your probably one of the few left with that information."

"Don't try me Mr. Fields. The only way you got Gelorte is if you blow up the ward we were all in." The turian leaned over slightly to stare upon the machines hooked up to him. "But by the looks of those leads, you won't have my company much longer. Gelorte is gone don't even bother with him but I can give you something else. The organization is good no connectivity between the branches everything is handled with the strictest efficiency, but when I join in something I always have a back door. I found out one name. Patriot." Yo'Tauros said as the harsh breathing resumed once again.

"That's it" How are we supposed to find somebody by their codename." James asked strictly.

"Talk to your friend at the ERC I'm sure he can figure out what you can't."


	25. Patriot

"The Special Task Groups are the eyes and ears of the Council, the Spectres are the blades, and the JTOP regiments are the hammer and shield."

-JTOP Executive Officer Ecktar on Council tactics to new JTOP recruits.

**4 Hours. 35 Units February, 2184 AD**

**JTOP Ship **_Fitroalin_ **holding position above planet designated as **

**Target GAMMA XETA**

**Start of Operation **Unmasked Retrieval

James leaned across the railing on the walkway as he stared out onto the planet. The world had somehow not appeared on Council records so it had been given a simple designation when the _Fitroalin _had entered the system. It was quite peculiar that a planet had escaped everyone's surveying but the more reasonable explanation was that someone had seen to the erase of the planet from most records. As James removed himself from the railing his thoughts returned to how they had arrived at this outcome.

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"Patriot, now that's an interesting code name." Visaq said as he clasped his hands as James and Bacek entered his office once more. "Well I'll have to go through our personnel records for any connections with patriot as a name or reference in their files, let me see here." The turian said as his claws sped through a series of commands into his terminal. James once again waited patiently for their contact to come up with something for them.

"Nothing coming up in relation to that name, did you have something a little more precise?" Visaq asked the pair of officers as he paused for their response.

"Do a cross check of military service during the First Contact War. I have a feeling that whoever it is spent some time in the military." Visaq nodded and then returned to funneling through hundreds if not thousands of names trying to close up the gaps.

"That did a lot." Visaq muttered sarcastically. "Approximately a thousand current members of the Corporation were in military service during the war. Only one was in the same unit as Yo'Tauros, Jardron Craoutus." Visaq tapped in another command and a projector on his desk unfolded and portrayed the image of a elder turian in full army uniform smiling proudly.

"Joined the army two years earlier than turian standards and became one of the greatest military minds of his time. At the age of twenty four he became a Spectre and served with high distinction according to his council report. At thirty eight he had moved back to the turian army and served as executive officer to General Oraka. A year later the war broke out and Oraka was one of the units sent in to fight during those skirmishes. During one of these it is reported that Craoutus got a little bit out of hand trying to crush a Alliance ship that had surrendered. He was just about to destroy the ship when Oraka ordered him to stand down. It took four officers to remand him. After that he returned to the empire and continued on with anti cooperation speeches claiming how humans were being given too many favors." Visaq furrowed his brow at the next line of text.

"It seems he didn't stop at speeches, according to this internal affairs report Craoutus started organizing ersatz pirate raids on human colonies. The raids were horrible and merciless and quickly he got the notice of the high ups in the army command. It took Alliance intelligence a few months to track down who was behind them. They brought their evidence to the Hierarchy and asked that they put a stop to it. When Craoutus was confronted with this he laughed in their faces saying that the turians had lost their honor during the First Contact War and that they deserved to treat the humans as he had done. He claimed he was a, Patriot.." Visaq said as he finished skimming through the archival report he'd brought up.

James could hardly contain his apprehension. "What was the last known location that file shows?" the soldier asked as Visaq quickly scanned through the file's contents once more.

"All record of him seem to disappear after his dishonorable discharge from the army. The Hierarchy didn't exile him because of the activities he had participated in as a Spectre, instead they let him retire with whatever honor he had left. They gave him a sort of pension plan and set him up on some fringe world according to this. Here we go, out of the way sector, high level of bio hazards. It's set up for terra-forming by the Hierarchy in twenty years so it's not going to have anything else going on there for awhile, perfect place to do things of questionable legality." Visaq said as he slowly turned around in his chair. "Window or aisle?" he said with a smile as he uploaded the information into a datadisk for the Cohort team members.

Now about to find the mastermind behind all that had happened at the Citadel James couldn't help it that a little anxiety as he closed with his prey. Of course one thing still tugged at him, nothing about the events at the Citadel were quiet. Using a top class hitman to take out one dealer and trying to kill off a member of the Council to throw off your pursuit just didn't sound very quiet. It seemed if you went through all the trouble to get those weapons, steps should have been taken to ensure it was done stealthily and quietly. Having Visaq on their team had definitely aided their cause but James was sure he and Nalick would have arrived at the conclusion sooner or later.

James pushed the thoughts away as he felt someone approaching. Turning slightly he saw Nina clad in her green JTOP suit moving with precision in every step. She came to a halt right before James and then in turn leaned against the railing as he did. The slight greenish glow emanating all the way from the planet up to the ship just seemed to play off her skin. The entire effect gave her a sort of radiance that made her all the more attractive as she turned to look at James.

"I didn't think we would be leaving home so soon, after Beloraud I thought we would earn some downtime." She said before her eyes traveled back to the viewport.

"I know, but at the same time I think it's the right decision. We were the ones at the start of this, I think we have the right to finish it." James said as he turned to look back to her. Even with all the experience she'd gathered, all the training she'd received and all the things that had gone on around her she still seemed to be that picturesque girl he'd met on the _Osiris_. Give or take that know she could kick him around a lot harder than before he still felt that she was a bit apprehensive about all they'd done and were going to do.

"Still it would have been nice to relax for just a bit, I mean." Her eyes caught James gaze and the words seemed to escape her. "I mean there are so many other squads in the Cohort but we have to go out to the enemy's backyard. Just seems unfair." She finished, once more staring out to the vast sea of space.

"Unfair for the squad, or unfair for you?" James moved slightly closer to her, closing the distance to a matter of inches. Moving slowly James brought his hand to her chin and turned her back to face him.

For a second she seemed to be frightened and then her eyes glowed with anticipation. "Both." She said before the two embraced. In the coldness of the ship confines the warmth they shared could have lasted forever. James wanted it to last forever, but nothing ever does. Slowly he felt Nina's lips part with his but a smile crossed her face warranting his attention. "I think that will do for now marine, its about time you check out what Bacek is up to." She said curtly as she left the gangway as curtly as she had come.

Caught a little bit off guard it took James a second to get back to himself. He grinned a bit and exited the gangway just as Nina had. He'd have plenty of time to pursue other goals once he was done here.

The briefing room of the _Fitroalin_ was a dark shade of steel grey with over three dozen seats in a circular formation. In the middle stood the familiar figures of Troaviel and Ivizzes as they stood besides James, next to them two new individuals were present.

Captain Eleesia, an Asari huntress turned squad leader and Captain Signius, ex elite commando operative in the turian army. Both had proven themselves according to Ecktar's pre briefing report. Both had done well in the missions the JTOP had sent them on and James felt that if the general had assigned them to this special task.

"The planet itself is uninteresting for most aspects. Average amount of flora makes for good foliage and coverage for our advance to the structure." Troaviel noted as he once more took the position of head coordinator for the operation. "Plans for the structure are not on hand as this is a privately owned facility. Could be a small time retirement home or it could be a advanced weapon development plant we wont know till were groundside. The _Fitroalin _will drop each team roughly 50 kilometers from the energy signature we've been picking up. Each team will start in from a different point making a rough pentagonal area of operation." He tapped a series of commands into the main council and a bird's eye view topographical map appeared showing the different levels of altitude of the specific area. 5 yellow dots appeared in the geometric formation and in turn each dot closed on the center of the shape.

"Once we reach the base it will be up to us to make a complete rationalization of its defenses and support. After this things will be turned over to Captain Ivizzes and Captain Fields to carry out the closing operation. Any questions." Troaviel asked as he finished up the pre briefing.

"What's our exit strategy?" one of the new squad's members asked where he lay leisurely in his seat.

"The _Fitroalin_ is only here for purpose of insertion. Once the mission is accomplished we have suitable communications equipment to alert a Turian base a few sectors away. If needed they will send in a grey fleet for retrieval." Troaviel finished as his sharp eyes surveyed the room awaiting any more questions. Grey Fleets meant a military force using non military or ghost vessels. For all intents and purposes if things went bad a unidentifiable group of ships would appear at the planet stay long enough for exfiltration and be done with it. It was a sound strategy but it had be executed with impervious secrecy otherwise people would know outside parties were involved.

"Very well, squad leaders will go over final preparation for the insertion and then we'll be on our way. It is absolutely essential that we maintain com silence until we are at the structure so watch each others backs out there. We're going into the big blind." The turian finished as the group began exiting the briefing room.

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"I'm beginning to think brining in patriot the operation was a mistake," the first speaker spoke softly and in complete control of their emotions.

"He has resources essential to gaining the upperhand in the battles to come. We both knew there was the chance that he may proove too, expensive to our interests. But his contacts within the Hierarchy have prooved quite useful in moving the items." the second speaker responded quickly and curtly. The voice was almost a match to the first voice but seemed a little deeper if not even edgier.

"Yes but I fear his usefullness has reached its limits."

"I'll make the arrangements."

**6 Hours. 35 Units February 2, 2184 AD**

**JTOP Ship **_Fitroalin_

**Holding position 10 meters above Target Gamma Xeta, Dropzone Charlie. **

Visors down and weapons at the ready the squad stood fully prepped at the edge of the _Fitroalin's_ exit ramp. Overhead was a series of cable routing systems critical to their insertion point, too big for a dirt insertion the teams had to rappel down to the planet's surface via the attached cables. Now on their final checks and double checks of gear James took the opportunity to address his friends and comrades.

"Listen up, I know we didn't have a lot of time to run any simulations back on the Citadel, but that doesn't matter. What does matter is our ability to stay the well maintained and well disciplined unit we've been since day one. Remember the threat we're going after now is the quintessential reason that the Cohort was ever formed. Remember that." He finished just as the green light signaling the group to descend turned on. "Let's move it out." With slow and calm prescision each squad member latched onto the overhead cables and making sure their harnesses were secure, promptly walked up to the edge of the ramp and jumped down to the ground.

James feet hit the turned with a resounding thud, though the sound was muffled due being in a full helmet. Quickly scanning the immediate area he saw no threats to be seen and then moved forward as not to get trampled by a fellow squad member. Bacek moved to his side and brought up his omni-tool and projected an image of the immediate area to the squad leader.

"There's a river her," he titled his head up slightly to indicate the direction. "about a kilometer north east of our current position. And here's our projected defensive screen." A red ned appeared on the projections top right edge and climbed down to a position roughly 10 kilometers from the river area had just indicated. "If we follow the river down it will take us right into their perimeter."

"If the projection is right, if you were doing something you weren't supposed to be doing and you had the money for it, I doubt you wouldn't put some backups in place." James replied as the remainder of the squad landed and made sure the immediate area was secure. "Got a long walk ahead of us, everyone stay sharp."


	26. Trial by Fire

**Author's note.**

It may be that I've been watching a little too much Lost of late //I don't own Lost or anything.// but I felt the need to give more of James' background up and couldn't really adapt it into the present day story line. Thus I have included a flashback line that will explain more about the main character than the regular story has allowed me. I hope it turns out well.

"What makes a weapon deadly? Is it the effectiveness, the deadly proficiency it's easiness to master? No it is the ability to rapidly produce that weapon to a point that numbers will count for nothing against it."-Unknown-

**10 Hours. 45 Units February 3, 2184 AD**

**Planet Gamma Xeta**

**En route to Facility designated Target Alpha**

**Day Two of Operation "Unmasked Retrieval"**

A branch snapped under James boot as the group continued on their trek through the jungle filled planetary surface. Up ahead Bacek and Cahleura and their almost eerily silent steps stayed on point making sure the path was clear. After the first day of marching they had decided wearing their full suits of armor was gonna take them out a lot faster than any enemy combatants. James felt a little unprotected without his full gear but as there was already more sweat collecting on his forehead he felt compelled to go on without the armor.

Wiping the perspiration from his temple his eyes scanned around checking for anything amiss in the environment. They had already seen several forms of native life, the creatures had provided an interesting change of pace from the overcrowded flora, but James knew that it would provide excellent cover for anyone preparing to ambush the squad on their route.

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**April 11, 2178 **

**Systems Alliance Training Base in Hadgeld, Germany**

**Student Assignment. The unknown enemy.**

"You hit the enemy at their strong point, they are anticipating this move but you do it anyway. You sacrifice one assault to lull them into a sense of ease. In the time they think you're licking your wounds you strike quickly and decisively here at their supposed weak point." James said making sure to continue to remain motionless. Everything about this assignment was being watched and graded from the mannerisms in his voice to his stance.

"Interesting conclusion Fields but this plan of action only works if you think you can expend the resources in your initial assault. What makes you think your troops are going to be willing to make the secondary attack after what happens during the first?" A gray haired yet intuitive looking old man asked. All eyes in the classroom seemed to focus on James waiting for his response.

James slanted his head forward slightly. He knew the question was going to be asked and he thought that he'd come up with the right answer but was now having to make the argument in class it was going to be an interesting debate.

"The ends of course, must justify the means professor Othern. If the mission requires it, the troops would need to accomplish their mission. I wouldn't rely on the tactic for more straight forward missions but the manner of this attack could be used effectively in some theaters of thought." James said as he finished off his reply.

"You didn't answer my question Fields, how would you convince your troops to do the second assault?" Othern asked as James collected his datapad on the podium. Looking up to respond James began to figure out just how he was going to reply.

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It seemed for an eternity since they'd been following the river forward closer and closer into the lion's den but so far no one had seen anything and Tholam hadn't detecting any sort of communications that would indicate an enemy patrol. Now almost a day and a half into the mission James felt just a little bit on edge over the relative calm around him. As they journeyed forward James spotted another branch ahead of him and decided it'd be better to avoid it rather than breaking the silence.

The sniper rifle has always been a thing of beauty. Fine toned to a tool of warfare from the earliest application of firearms. The most efficient way of dealing with one's enemy with the least amount of commotion possible, the perfect weapon of death in its wielder's opinion. James trailed the sights of his rifle left to right observing the trio of patrolling individuals that Bacek had spotted. Keeping the rest of the group about half a klick behind them the chance that the sentries would realize they were under eyes would be very slim and keep the element of surprise securely with the commandoes.

The beings were all turian, each with a dull grey uniform and a rifle at the ready. James knew it was still early to assume that that they were enemy targets. Of course walking up to them and saying hello wasn't the best option either. Better to think up something a little cleverer.

Citus Gotan looked over to his right raising his rifle slightly. He knew he's seen movement in the bushes but now when his dark eyes were set right at the disturbance he couldn't see anything. To his right his cousin Kaitus was already covering his back while their accomplice, a quiet man who'd called himself Stone was spinning around to cover their rear guard.

"What was it?" his cousin asked suspiciously while keeping his own set of eyes searching for whatever the possible threat was.

"I'm not sure, hasn't been anything out here since when Rios thought he saw a krogan and tired to burn half the jungle down and then.." this time he definitely saw movement this time. Suddenly all three rifles were aimed squared up at the jungle brush ahead of them. Citus glanced over at Kaitus' white rimmed eyes and then returned to the moving plants.

Suddenly a fellow turian and an asari stumbled out of the jungle almost head long into the patrol, Citus almost lost his balance as the asari collided with him. His training kicking in he took two steps back and raised his rifle up a bit to make sure it was ready if he needed it.

"Woah woah my friend no need for that, I'm pretty sure we lost em in the shrubs." The turian said as he bent over to catch his breath.

"I'm sorry this is private property I can't let you come any further." Citus said quickly in an almost harsh tone. He knew the rules, nobody got into the area, the only people supposed to be in there are already there. Still if there was only two of them, and neither had weapons. "What are you doing out here anyway." He asked as he kept his weapon ready.

"Just doing a little big game hunting, damn beasts actually got the drop on us, don't you hate it when that happens." Just as the words left his mouth several figures in sleek black armor appeared from the brush. "But I guess we can settle for something else." The turian said with a sly grin.

As Citus and his comrades slowly lowered their weapons he turned to one of the commandos, "Why couldn't they have been more krogan?" he said with a heavy sigh.

Nina and Tholam finished binding the wrists of the guards and then helped the group up to their feet. James was still figuring everything out about what to do just as he turned back to his charges. "So just what kind of operation are you guys running down here." He asked inquisitively as Bacek and the rest of the squad kept watch.

"We're raising baby Tovalers, they're great guard animals." The charcoal skinned turian retorted gruffly to the question.

"Yeah being able to vomit acid is always something you want your kids to experience at an early age." Joavn said with a smirk. "You better start talking gray, we've got things to do and a few guards can't slow us down that much." He turned up to James. "Put a round in his friend's leg."

James nodded quickly to the command and unholstered his Stinger swiftly and aimed it to the armored kneecap. He had decided early on that secrecy was as important as ever in this operation. It was bad enough he'd already exposed Bacek and Cahleura to the patrol but he needed to keep the rest of their identities as dark as possible. So far Joavn was doing a good job fulfilling the role of ersatz squad leader but it would only go so far.

The pistol's barrel lined up its target just as Kaitus opened his mouth. "They don't tell us anything, they employ us to keep an eye on the grounds. Nobody outside gets to go into the facility, they don't pay us for that." Citus stared crimson bolts to his cousin for giving in. If their employer, unstable as he was already found out about this they'd have a lot more than death to worry about, not that he figured they make it out here much longer. He braced himself for the imminent execution.

Joavn glanced up slightly to James awaiting the signal for what to do next. The movement was so quick it wouldn't have mattered that the captured still had their heads bent slightly to the ground. James made a quick shake of his head. Jovan brought up his rifle and pressed a small tab on the side of the gun. Quickly and proficiently he fired one shot into the neck of each turian. Of course in place of a rapidly traveling pellet of lethal efficiency there was a tiny dart lodged into the rough skin of each being. Almost at once they fell down to the jungle floor leaving the Cohort team alone to their thoughts.

"Well we better start moving." Jovan said as he unclasped his helmet and lowered if from his sullen looking features. "How'd I do?" he asked as he turned over to James.

"I think a little less shoot to solve and more just solve next time, don't worry about it I'm sure there's gonna be more where that came from."

"Patriot you never fail to amaze, and this goes for all the weapons?" the first individual asked the turian besides him. The elder of the species had yellow gold tattoos emerging from each of his eyes.

"Of course, it took awhile to make it practical but in the long term it will be much easier to create in the future." Jardron stared out onto the manufacturing floor. "In a way it makes me so proud, these weapons will secure victory for." Suddenly a spell seemed to overtake the seasoned turian. He rapidly expelled a series of coughs and the other individual had to move quickly to balance his comrade.

"It seems to be getting worse my friend. What have the doctors told you?" the comrade asked as Jardron cleared his throat.

"Nothing that I haven't already heard but it doesn't matter, be it now or the next generation we will have our victory." Jardron turned up to talk to his comrade. "One way or another we have secured victory."

His compatriot nodded almost completely assured in the knowledge himself and brought his hand to pat his friend's shoulder. "One way or another they will never see it coming."

The building was interesting to say the least, it seemed like a combination of artistic manor as well as a large warehouse at least from the exteriors they were seeing. Of course things are never what they seem like on the outside. And of course they were still under comm silence for another 30 units so they had some time to figure things out.

**18 Hours, 04 Units**. **February 3, 2184 AD**

**Planet Gamma Xeta**

**Facility designated Target Alpha**

**Day Two of Operation "Unmasked Retrieval"**

**"**The main entrance is here," James pointed to the structure's entrance on the large datapad he had brought to the meeting of the captains. "It has turrets manned at all times according to both our observation and what we've gotten out of the prisoners so far."

"Of course if there's a main entrance then there is always going to be a secondary entrance." Ivizzes growled almost and traced his claw from the entrance to another entrance north-east of the beginning point. "This is where we hit them and hit them hard. My team has been watching it closely, it seems to be a service entrance of some kind we tracked several individuals bringing out loads of refuse and dumping them in containers. The kicker of course is that they do this while in full containment suits." To this Signius raised his head obviously interested in the peculiar piece of evidence.

"So another piece of the puzzle falls out and we get another gap. What does a retired turian officer have in his private residence that requires full containment suits?" the turian asked as he stared back to the structure.

"Not a lot of people know about this facility, if Jardron wanted to do something away from prying eyes." Troaviel mentioned as he continued looking over the maps the squads had created of the immediate areas. "So what exactly does this mean for us?"

"It means that we need to be extremely careful with how we proceed. No sense walking into a death trap without knowing just how you're going to get shot." James said as he figured out the best alternative for them to enact. "Anyone up for a bit of force recon?"

Bacek was always one for finding the good wherever you could. Since his induction into the time honored military training back when he was young he'd done his best to keep his wits about him and look for the good wherever he could find it. Interestingly enough however, there wasn't much to look for when you were headed straight into an enemy facility with only exterior knowledge and your wits to protect you.

He and the three other turians made a casual and non eventful walk up to the border of the main entrance. All of them had their helmets atop their heads and visors down. Arterius hadn't been happy about the mission either but Troaviel had a larger frame than the gray uniforms and James didn't want to risk the base guards figuring out the ruse too early.

And the last two members of the group had been provided by one of the unwilling prisoners and a turian Cohort member by the name of Taoris. James had said without at least one of the original patrol present the ploy wouldn't even get off the ground. As one of the sentries took notice of him the guard unholstered his shotgun from its port.

"Hang on their Citus, you know the rules, anyone who belongs in the base is already in the base." The approaching guard said as he held his shotgun at the ready keeping a close watch on the newcomer.

"He said his ship got busted up on his reentry, said he's here on the request of Yo'Tauros." With this mentioning the guard seemed to show a little bit of surprise, he lowered his weapon slightly and looked over to Bacek. Appearing to size up the turian he moved towards him and responded.

"Well if you're here on the request of comrade Yo'Tauros, than you wouldn't mind telling me how his uncle is doing?" the guard leader asked as he continued keeping his weapon at the ready.

Bacek suppressed a smile to the question before making his next remark. "Well maybe you can go ask him yourself." Just as the realization hit the guard leader a sniper round cut through the air and lanced one of the turret gunners. The turian's rough skin blistered under the extreme heat of the blast as his form crumpled down to the floor.

Without another word the Cohort squad member withdrew compact pistol and fired point blank into the guard captain. The turian yelped in agony at the attack while Bacek caught the next guard in a swift jab. Taoris knocked the prisoner unconscious and opened fire with his own weaponry. As the guards dove for cover amidst the supply containers nobody was quick to see the group of twelve black armored commandoes as they moved on past the main entrance.

James heard the whirr click as his sniper rifle folded back into place on the back of his armor and then looked downward. In one swift movement he dropped to the ground feeling a bit of pain as he landed. Making a note that such a drop shouldn't be part of his normal routine James continued along meeting up with Tholam and Joavn whom now were full suited and ready for action. The firefight just ahead didn't make him feel very optimistic but he knew patience was every thing.

The firefight raged on as the base guards slowly fell back under the accurate to say the least fire. From the tree line single precision shots rang out while from the base of the foliage a squad of eight armored troops marched right out from the trees firing as they went. The entire visage was quite discomforting to the garrison as enemy group methodically continued forward their weapons working through almost all cover available. One security officer made a run for the secondary turret which had been plucked off almost as quickly as the first one. But just as he was clearing the body a storm of rounds penetrated his barriers and the man collapsed back down to the exterior floor.

The guards however did have numbers on their side. Even without the heavy guns they were still able to bring concentrated fire down upon the advancing soldiers. It took a few seconds but eventually the storm of fire broke the commandos' morale and their line broke. Their position compromised the commando leader motioned to the squad to fall back to the trees. Under the suppression fire of their snipers the group rushed back to the relative safety of the jungle but they could only move so fast. Two of the fleeing soldiers fell against the torrent of fire but the rest managed to escape.

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**April 11, 2178 **

**Systems Alliance Training Base in Hadgeld, Germany**

**Student Assignment. The unknown enemy.**

"As a leader it's your responsibility to make sure you know what your troops are made of. There's never a perfect situation in a military conflict, one must always make due with what's given. I would compel upon my troops that this way was the best to counter the threat laid before us. As you said before a leader must maintain complete control in order to execute his mission, my troops would do the secondary assault because they knew. That even if we lost the battle, we would still win the war." James said as he waited for the rebuttal by his professor.

Instead Othern just looked back at James; blankly it seemed at first but soon enough a sly grin crossed the older man's face. "It seems I was wrong Fields you have been paying attention in class. This assignment was in fact not geared toward the accurate response tactically but instead it was a reprisal of what we studied last semester. No matter the plan or tactic a unit no matter how small or large must be under the watch of an able leader." Othern looked up at the clock in the beige walled classroom and then turned back to his students. "Alright that's all the time we have today, make sure to review your knowledge on the 'Joker's Gambit' and bring in that report I gave you about Hackett." The professor began cleaning up his desk as the students began to disperse. James was just getting ready to leave when he heard Othern's voice once more. "Fields, may I have a word with you?"

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The base guards finaly relaxed their stances as the area was secured. They began moving through the bodies making sure to collect the IDs of their fallen comrades. One guard moved over to one of the dead commandoes and used his foot to kick the corpse onto its back. A blank helmet visor stared back at the investigator and he would have moved on except for a slight movement of the helmet. The guard instinctively brought up his weapon and aimed it squarely at the motion and prepared to fire. With his right hand firmly gripped on the handle and trigger the turian soldier used his left hand to remove the helmet.

As soon as the armored piece left the owner's head the guard was shocked to see a fellow guard staring back at him. "Kaitus what the hell's going on?" he asked as he ripped the utility tape off Kaitus' mouth.

"Hit the alert! They're going to hit the side entrance, get on the comm now!"


	27. Chapter

Ivizzes slammed the but of his shotgun across the faceplate of the unaware guard

**Don't know if anyone remembers this story but I wanted to bring it back and see what I could make of it. Hope you enjoy.**

Ivizzes slammed the butt of his shotgun across the faceplate of the unaware guard. The turian's head snapped painfully over to the left a second before his body followed in a similar motion. On the third second the slimmer being was suddenly in the air and then crashing into a group of supply canisters on the krogan's left side. As the other guards met quicker if not less painful deaths the burly warrior turned back to the route his squad had just arrived on. He was glad to see that Troaviel's plan seemed to be working as far as the feint was concerned. But now it was time for action and the Cohort team leader was only too happy to dish it out.

"Seal your suits, whatever's going on in here stinks of something that shouldn't be stinking. Keep sharp, no mistakes."

He got a series of short precise nods from his squad along with a slight hissing as their suits environmental seals locked into place. Having survived the genophage's harsh regimen Ivizzes had no problem making sure he would continue living long to fight even if it made him a little cautious in the eyes of his teammates. Better safe than dead was his motto even if seemed a bit soft for the warrior psyche. He pushed through the mirky thoughts as he led the group forward. Keeping their eyes rained for any threats the team entered into the base.

James watched from his post as about half the sentry guards rush forward along the base interior. At their speed he calculated that Ivizzes would have about 10 minutes before he found that the ruse had played its part. It was all part of the plan of course, but it made James anxious and slightly concerned with his comrades about to get hit on their rear guards. Nonetheless he had a mission to do and it was time to get moving. Bringing two fingers together he pointed forward towards the now deserted side of the main entrance. Fully prepared for whatever lay before them the commandoes burst from the tree line firing as they went.

Three of the base guards didn't have a second's notice before the barrage hit them and were immediately swept off their feet. Those lucky enough to have been remaining at their posts brought their own reply against the raiders as the black suited commandoes poured out from the trees.

James flanked by Cahleura and Sol'kahf moved forward in a delta formation bringing the squad's faster firing weapons to bear on the guards. Behind them Arterius approached with Nina and Gerick, their rifles at the ready as they continued the barrage with more accurate bursts than the first advance wave. Still in the relative safety Bacek and Tholam made the last addition using pinpoint sniper fire aided by the helmet cameras of their squadmates.

A bright lance of energy flew past James' shoulder as he moved forward. A guard not more than two meters ahead of him flew backwards from the blow as James searched for his next target. Gunfire on his left brought his aim to bear on a pair of shotgun wielding sentries just as they raised their weapons. Firing two blasts in succession to keep them pinned James changed up his advance and rolled to a barrier at his right. Chips of the defensive shield clipped against his helmet visor but did little to obscure his vision.

Rising up from his cover to target the pair of guards James saw that both were floating aimlessly away from the battle, the victims it seemed of another of Cahlerua's biotic attacks. The squad leader nodded a silent thanks to his Asari squadmate since along with clearing more enemies the attack was doubling as a shock and awe to the remaining guards. Rushing forward James collapsed his shotgun and reached out toward the next closest guard. Still paying attention to his floating comrades the sentry had little time to realize just what was happening. In an instant James brought his armored fist right into the turian's faceplate. With a satisfying crunch the plate gave way under the enhanced power of the blow and James continued to disarm his opponent. His right arm still returning from the first strike James swept up his target's gun in his left and yanked it free of his adversary's grip.

The turian let out a small grunt of annoyance right before James swept the rifle up against his already battered helmet. The alien crashed down to the ground while the squad leader moved on. As he fired a burst of rounds at his next target he heard a voice on his helmet link.

"Delta this is Alpha, we're moving through the interior now scans are getting some weird feedback for both chemical and biological. Make sure you're suits have no breaches before you enter the structure, best take no chances with whatever is going on in here. Alpha Lead out." Ivizzes voice seemed to have an even harsher edge to it than usual. James realized it was perfectly plausible that the krogan didn't like the idea of turian experiments going on. It was too late for second thoughts, and it was time to move on.

"Lets move out squad, time's burning." Bacek took point scanning from left to right with a sweep of his assault rifle. Taking position to Bacek's right opposite Sol'kahf to form a delta formation while the rest of the squad fell in behind them to form their rearguard. As they made it through the first hallway James brought his mike up once more. "Sigma team hold position, I'll contact you in 25 units with further instructions."

"Delta we're supposed to stick together why are you altering the mission profile?" Signius asked as soon as the sentence had left James' lips. James formulated his answer as quickly and curtly as possible. "

"We're going into this blind Sigma if anything happens to us or Alpha we need someone to make it back to command." He replied as the squad passed through the wide set of doors into the compound exterior. The halls weren't overly sterile or lab like which comforted James' mind about a chemical or biological attack but there was still the window for it. Clicking his com unit three times to issue new orders he knelt down and surveyed the area. As Bacek and Sol'kahf inched forward into the north and the remainder of the squad forming a small perimeter James heard Signius reply.

"Roger Delta we'll continue guarding the exit strategy just make sure you get the job done right and then we can all let command know just what's going on here." Signius' strong toned voice spoke as James prepared for his next move into the unfamiliar grounds.

"Confirm Sigma we're proceeding forward, maintain com silence for exactly" James consulted his timepiece before bringing his eyes back to a forward position. "23 units Delta out." The Cohort squad leader nodded to Cahleura and the pair headed off following closely behind the turian and his Broulian counterpart. James led them down the main entry corridor and saw no signs of enemy contact. 'What am I looking for a reception desk at a building that's not supposed to exist' he mused to himself while still waiting for the inevitable ambush that was the only equation to the nonexistent guard population. Whatever the case the squad he needed to stay strong and make sure he got his mission completed and his squad home. They finaly made it to a black lined door with a foreboding sheen to its metallic surface. The door had no markings whatsoever but James faintly felt something disturbing beyond the barrier.

"Tholam see what you can do about a way through." As the salarian nodded James mulled things over trying to weigh the options. If his technician couldn't breach the door they'd have to double back and it would take time that the operation couldn't afford. Quickly though he came to a decision and turned to Bacek. "Take Nina and double time it back to entrance. Rendezvous with Sigma and then take the left corridor when you get back see if you can locate the nerve center in this place." The two nodded and set off on their task. A couple of minutes after the two had rounded the corner Tholam turned from his work and flashed a quick thumbs up to the squad leader. The six remaining Cohort members split up and set up on either side of the door. As everyone readied up James' addressed them. "Everyone stay tight and stay focused, watch your corners and watch each other. Open it." The salarian's eyes blinked once and the inputed the command code. As the mighty doors parted the 6 commandoes burst inward


	28. Shadow Lifted

As the doorway allowed the squad enough time to all enter fire answered their arrival from up ahead

**21 Hours. 29 Units February 3, 2184 AD**

**Planet Gamma Xeta**

**Facility Target Alpha**

**Day Two of Operation "Unmasked Retrieval"**

As the doorway allowed the squad enough time to all enter fire answered their arrival from up ahead. James found the room had two levels with enemies on both coordinating defensive fire at the Cohort squad. Enemy rounds splattered off his kinetic barriers as he rolled forward into one of the alcoves that dotted the first floor walls. The room seemed to be a large store room of some kind, but it had little cover save for support pillars and niches in the wall like the one James had taken.

The whole area felt like a shooting gallery with his team on the wrong side of the glass. The setup was made worse by the fact that the shooters on the elevated floor had a horrendous advantage on the pinned troops, an advantage that would turn deadly in a hurry unless they acted fast. While a marksman on the second floor peppered James' hiding spot the squad leader glanced back to his squad mates making sure to not expose his helmet as he did. He found Sol'kahf and Tholam crouched behind a pair of pillars about twenty feet away from the enemy shooters. Cahleura and Arterius were holed up in a set of alcoves like James and Gerick was currently prone against the metallic floor while doing his best to use the columns ahead of him to obscure the enemies' view.

James clicked his com once and then held up his left palm to his squad. Clenching it at a first and then opening it rapidly three times in succession he set up the next chain of orders before he fired a burst to the enemy group. Almost all in the same breath Sol'kahf Cahleura and Tholam unclasped grenades and hurled them forward toward the enemy position. The small defense barrier between the Cohort squad and their enemy would have stopped the explosives but suddenly a blue shimmering field seemed to cover them all. Completely defying the laws of gravity the grenades sailed upward and over the barrier to stop right in front of the surprised group. With no time to think only two of the ten turians that had been firing upon the commandoes managed to jump up and over the barrier as the explosives ripped through both armor and kinetic barriers. The two's escape was brutally and efficiently cut short as James sallied forward locating a better position against the enemy still entrenched on the level above them.

If the gunmen overhead had any brains at all they wouldn't fall for the same kind of trick and would be either preparing an immediate attack or trying to find a better area to hit the commandoes at. There was still a torrential amount of fire scaling back and forth between the commandoes and defenders and James did his best to block out the noise as he formulated the right plan of action. Over to his left he noted what he hoped would be an elevator that would take them to where their foe remained. As he checked the doorway out it was indeed a lift but with only space to possibly fit two people abreast. Anyone trying to attack the floor above would only be able to send up two soldier at a time and the defenders would have easy pickings for anyone foolish enough to attack.

Quickly turning back he noted that Sol'kahf had caught up with him in the momentary distraction and awaited orders while the rest of his team were still bogged down. Then suddenly the idea struck him even as Tholam had to fall back to avoid his helmet becoming riddled with enemy rounds. James clicked his com unit once more and then relayed several hand signals in Cahleura's direction. Immediately replying to the orders the blue skinned asari made a few gestures questioning the plan.

James quickly waved them away and repeated the orders and this time Cahleura slowly nodded before firing off a few shots at an unseen attacker. The squad leader kneeled and grabbed several grenades from his belt. Next he opened his utility box on the back end of the belt and grabbed a spool of cable. As he began assembling his contraption he turned back to Sol'kahf who watched the construction with intrigue. Once he was set with his creation the Cohort Captain headed for the elevator doors.

"If this goes wrong," James mulled over his next words carefully "tell Nina I'm sorry we didn't have more time." The broulian warrior looked at him and then nodded. In front the elevator doors parted and James stepped into the small space. As the doors slid shut Sol'kahf prepared himself for his part to play.

/

Nina and Bacek led Sigma team down the corridor the adjacent to the one they had walked down originally. Just a few feet in front of them Sigma's captain Signius was on point with his second in command Tom Yugior. Yugior was slightly ahead of his turian squad leader but both kept their attention vigilante and their guns at the ready. The door ahead had parted instinctively to the presence of movement and before them was what appeared to be an access hallway with doors branching off in several directions. As the group fanned out Nina wished once more that they had some sort of blueprint of the base to at least get their bearings. The five doors that led out of the room could lead anywhere and splitting up could open up the avenue for ambushes by the foes that knew this facility all too well.

Abruptly however two of the doors at the north end of the room burst open and figures appeared. Several bursts of fire suddenly lit up Yugior as he tried to crouch down to avoid the fire. The man fell forward as Signius bellowed an order.

"Split up your shot lines and coordinate!" Siginus' voice shouted over the squad channel. Nina poured the ammo on as the turian squad leader barreled out of the path of both the group's firing lines. The cohort squad members divided into two three man firing groups and each concentrated their fire on one of the doors. Nina and Bacek joined in after realizing the ploy and at least two of the enemy combatants fell under the accurate barrage.

As Signius finished his roll the turian realized he'd made it right to another one of the doors on the east side of the room. Suddenly he heard a mechanical whirring and the door sped open and a blue metallic blade swung out at him as he stepped back to dodge the weapon. For a moment the sword glanced off the doorway before it angled back at the Cohort captain. Moving quickly to his right to avoid the swing Signius caught sight of his attacker. The turian's gold rimmed eyes seemed to glow with hatred as he snarled back at Signius once more swinging his ornate sword at the commando. Signius brought up his rifle this time to intercept the blow but the blade crashed right on through the weapon and slashed through the chest piece of Signius' armor. Dark blood spilled from the wound as Signius fought hard to stay upright through the pain. While he stumbled slightly backward he heard his opponent laugh at him.

"I didn't realize that the supposed elite hammer of the council trained its soldiers to be so weak and spineless." The voice spoke in a harsh undertone completing the visage that Signius' tried to move back from. "It's too bad they didn't try to send a spectre after us, that may have been interesting." The enemy soldier said as he raised his sword once more.

"How can you fight me knowing the betrayal you've committed. I am a fellow warrior and you will kill me without mercy?" Signius managed to spurt out while blood began to stain the floor beneath him.

Amidst the torrent of fire in front of him the gold eyed turian smiled grimly. "We've committed no betrayal save the salvation of our species. Only you and that false council have betrayed your oaths, and you shall pay for your transgressions." With an inhuman roar the turian brought the blade down as Signius' closed his eyes awaiting the inevitable.

But no sweep came to his neck. He felt nothing besides the pain he already was dealing with and suddenly most of the ferocious concert of fire that had been the backdrop to the room had vanished as he opened his eyes. The turian in front of him was laying face up before him with only a scant remnant of his face to confirm that he was the swordsman about to sow death for him. As Signius turned around he saw an open door where a bandaged Troaviel held an unwavering rifle. As time seemed to flow again the rest of 3rd squad entered the room. The image began to fade however as one of the squad rushed towards him with a medkit in hand. As the human reached him he slipped into darkness.

Captain Troaviel breathed a slight sigh as he had his team secured the immediate area. As his squad reported back an all clear he turned to the remainder of Sigma. "Sorry we couldn't arrive sooner we ran into a bit of trouble when we hit the secondary entrance." As Nina and Backed approached them with questioning looks he continued. "Sorry about the deception but the captains and I decided we needed an ace in the hole. While we said we would stay as a perimeter watch we actually went on to infiltrate via the ventilation shafts we found while on our initial observation. We climbed through and made our way through trying to find the security center and, he were are." He finished as the medic finished examining Signius. "Will he make it?" he asked as he moved toward the fallen turian.

The medic bowed his head slightly. "It doesn't look good unless I can get him evacuated within the hour. If he doesn't get to a med center in two there isn't much chance.

Troaviel nodded and then looked back at Signius. "Stabilize him and hold up here. We'll come back for him and Yugior and make sure they get a prober ceremony when we return.

Even as he finished something seemed to bug Nina in the back of her mind. She knew they'd been maintaining com silence for the duration to make sure that the enemy didn't realize just how many commandoes were there but hiding Troaviel's mission from the rest of the group didn't seem like something James and the other captains would do and the grim reminder of what had happened to O'Kreamer still fresh in her mind she decided she'd better be safe than sorry. "Captain you remember our first assignment right?" she asked as she turned back to Troaviel.

The turian looked back at her somberly and nodded. "Yes but we really need to get moving Collins we need to find the center and..."

"What was the mission Captain?" she asked again making sure her that he heard her clearly.

Slowly Troaviel's eyes locked with hers. "The siege at Beloraud. Why do you ask." He said as everyone else seemed to stop their tasks.

"And what was the contact's name that we met up with?" Nina finished as she felt Bacek move up beside her. Her squad mate seemed to share the apprehension over Troaviel's sudden appearance and he knew she was just making sure.

After a few moments Troaviel replied back keepings his voice solid and calm. "Chaveninski, his wife was taken 30 years from when you met him." After a moment the tension started to fall away and then he continued. "Satisfied?"

Nina finally let go of the breath she had held and then looked back at the turian. "Sorry captain I've just been a little on edge since that attempt on the councilor."

Troaviel nodded curtly back to her. "No need for apologies Collins I think we're all in need of some serious R and R once this mission is over. But for that we need to move out and finish it. Everyone set?" he asked as the rest of the Cohort troops readied up.

Nina nodded back but something caught her eye where Signius had fallen. "At least we don't have to look for the command center anymore." She said as she moved past to the doorway were the medic was still watching over the downed captain.

"Why's that?" Troaviel asked as he moved in behind her watching his step as he approached the turian with the melted face. Inside was a host of data screens and sensor feeds along with a massive display of what Nina assumed had to be the facility. On the map she could make out the two branchoff corridors that Delta and Sigma had taken along with the room they had just entered. The weren't any symbols on the map but the amount of interfaces and command prompts held up the idea this was their goal.

"Ventim secure a terminal and see what you can find. Then load up that image onto a file for our HUDS so we can see where were going in this place." As the human technician sat down to work the captain turned to the single Otrale in his squad. "Avenk once we secure the information I want you to stay here and make sure nothing happens to Signius or Ventim."

"Understood sir." The small reptilian-like being hissed as he moved forward into the command center. Nina watched as its back eye continuously scanned the area as if always on guard for any threats. After a few moments a new image was uploaded unto her helmet's HUD and then Troaviel was moving again.

"Alright it looks like if we continue north and then take the next right we'll arrive at this room here." On her HUD Nina watched as a glowing orange beacon appeared a few rooms beyond the hallway that she and Bacek had split off from Delta squad with. "Let's move out."

/

As the doors opened James immediately found himself being watched over by at least three turian soldiers each with a suit of grey armor sheathing them. Each of the enemy soldiers raised their weapons to him as he stepped out the elevator.

"I don't think that's such a good idea." James grinned as he raised up the item he had created barely a minute ago. The weapon he held before them was a combination of three high explosive grenades with a length of cable strung through their pins. The front end of the cable was in James left hand while the other end was anchored into the pin of the last grenade in the row. "You shoot me and a whole lot of turians go off to meet their maker. Drop your guns now." He ordered as he noted at least three more turians lined up on the railing still trying to keep his squad pinned down. Slowly however most of their gazes occasionally made it back to the insane marine with the apparent death wish.

None however were willing to lay down there weapons and after a few moments one spoke up. "I know humans my ignorant friend and none of you would be foolish to think something like this will defeat us. I can see it in your eyes, you're not willing to kill yourself over a few grunts like us." He finished with a cruel smile.

James grinned widely and then replied staunchly "Well there's a first time for everything." He replied back as he yanked hard on the cable. Each pin was ripped out of the explosive with a mechanical click and suddenly the realization hit the turians and they dove back away from James, two even vaulting over the railing. Instead of an explosion however all that came was the small chime as the elevator once more opened up its doors and allowed another commando in. as the turians stood back up bewildered they saw a massive broulian now standing besides.

"That's it? All that just to get one more soldier up here to die along side you?" the turian who had spoken before said trying to push back the laughter at the ploy.

James turned to his comrade and then grinned back at the enemy troops. "Well he's a good soldier but I think she's more than enough for you guys." James said as he raised his rifle. The turians looked back behind them and suddenly a shimmering blue figure seemed to span across almost their entire field of view. At the center of the glow the asari commando floated towards them, her hands spread out like a mighty bird of prey and columns of mighty blue energy roared forward to the turian defenders. Suddenly all four of the remaining troops were cast into the air by the force of the biotic attack. Encased in their own blue glow their bodies were swung effortlessly as if they were as light as a feather but slowly enough that Sol'kahf and James easily riddled each one with fire.

As the last of the guards were dealt with Cahleura finally came to a rest on the level as James and Sol'kahf secured the fallen foes. As the glow subsided around her James was startled suddenly when the asari stumbled a bit as her feet touché the ground.

"You alright Cahleura?" he asked as he finally noted the train on her usual youthful demeanor. He knew the maneuver was going to be hard on her but she'd never really spoke of limits to her powers. The plan they'd just used had always been sort of a joke but now staring at both the effects and the after effects James knew he wouldn't be asking her to do it again anytime soon.

"I'm alright just a little shaky, never. Never hovered before." She managed a slight smile as Arterius and Gerick exited the elevator and rejoined the squad.

"Cahleura remind me never get in your way when you're angry." The sly human joked as he looked over the damage.

"I knew you had it in you. Thanks." James noted as he made sure she was feeling alright again. As she nodded thanks to him the squad leader turned back to the rest of the squad that had all assembled on the upper level. "Good work everyone lets find the end of this trail and make sure we finish it just as well.

Sol'kahf nodded and then spoke up. "Found a open door over here looks like it leads into an access corridor" he finished as Tholam brought up his omni-tool for a few seconds. A small beep issued from the device and then the slender alien turned to James.

"I'm getting some interesting readings from the door beyond the corridor possibly the same as what captain Ivizzes was speaking of before we went silent. I recommend we seal suits before progressing further."

James nodded and then checked his timepiece while the others began going through setup on their suits. Twenty units total had passed since he told Sigma to hold com silence. For a few seconds his thought drifted to Nina wishing to know for sure she was alright. He managed to fend off the thought realizing it could distract him at the wrong moment and with still a lot of gaps in this mission he couldn't take any chances. He sealed up his suits and then clicked his com unit 3 times. Taking a deep breath he stepped forward into the unknown.

/

Ivizzes and his team moved as silently as their suits allowed. So far they had come across what appeared to be two technicians and one security officer but for each opponent the large alien had opted for stealth rather than brute force. The entire part of the facility however was still much of a mystery to him. There were no vats of boiling liquids or chemicals, no containment cells with mutated beings ready to be released on an unsuspecting populace. Just large machines continuously clanging and banging as gears went up and down and side to side in an awkward ballad. His best guess was the entire area was a foundry for something but so far he'd seen none of the finished product. The conveyor belts between the machines were enclosed and seemed heavily shielded. That small tidbit seemed strangest to the krogan but he tried to stay mindful over other possibilities.

"Whoever's running this places must have a nice slush fund going on here." Jimbal said as his helmet passed over the massive machines lining the space. "That's a T-90 core processor, they use it make power units in shipboard weaponry. Wasn't there something about some alliance fleet blown to hell by..."

Suddenly Ivizzes held up his mighty hand to his lips to silence his squadmate. Just up ahead he could see shadows moving just past a set of machines that seemed to be chomping small identical segments at an alarming rate. Turned his silence gesture into a forward chop he prepared his squad to move forward. Lowering his shotgun and replacing it with a large curved blade he slowed his pace and prepared to attack. As he and Jimbal stepped out of the shadows they grabbed the two turians in uniform fashion. As both commandoes eliminated the sentries the krogan spoke back to the rest of the squad. "Alright lets keep moving we got a schedule to…" his gaze finally turned back where his fellow soldiers were. At least a twenty turians in dull dark red armor surrounded the commando squad. The dull tint of the armor seemed to blend in perfectly with the churning machinery as Ivizzes realized the trap he'd led his troops into. As he lowered his knife the mighty krogan watched as one of the enemy soldiers removed his helmet.

The elderly visage of Jardron Craoutus was revealed before Ivizzes and urge to attack the nearest guard and try his luck to kill his target through sheer force of will but he doubted the odds of succeeding. "Smart move krogan we wouldn't like for you to die before the final phase of our project. Of course I do wish the genophage had wiped out all of you scum. It would have saved us a lot of trouble."

"Sorry to disappoint but I'm sure you'll be wishing that on others soon enough." Ivizzes snarled as Jardron nodded to one of his compatriots. Suddenly one of the turians slammed down the butt of his weapon into the krogan's head. Ivizzes had just the time to utter a curse as the darkness clouded his vision.


	29. Rise of Sadorn

James led his team into the small room they'd entered

James led his team into the small room they'd entered. About ten steps ahead of where his squad had just entered the small antechamber widened quickly and suddenly James's ears began to pick up a low constant rumble of machinery. As he passed through the entryway the entire squad panned across the vertical and horizontal planes making sure there were no threats in sight. The Cohort unit saw assembly arms and welding apertures along with long assembly lines superheated by the searing orange materials. James couldn't figure out exactly what the objects passing along their standardized paths were but he was sure it had something to do with his purpose here along with everything that had happened at the Citadel. Evidently this factory hidden in the private estate was the goal they had sought ever since the first investigation.

"Tholam what kind of readings are you getting from all the machinery?" the captain asked as he noted a small stairway descending toward what appeared to be the center of the room.

"It's all sorts of things going on at once but it looks like high quality weapon manufacturers at least from the initial readings I'm getting." Tholam said as his omni-tool flashed a series of short signals that James couldn't easily identify.

"Stay sharp, move out in Delta formation." James quickly ordered as he looked further down the pathway trying to ascertain any sign of a threat to the squad. Cahleura Sol'kahf and Arterius "Sol'kahf turn on your mission recorder and make sure we have plenty to give to command." Finally he turned to Gerick. "How much of this do you think you could blow to kingdom come?" he asked the fellow human.

"I got enough to make a large dent in it but I don't know what kind of chemicals this whole deal is making. I trigger an explosion and the wrong mix could not only tear us a new one but make this whole area a wasteland if anyone else tries to start living here." The darker skin human replied staunchly as ran his hand along some of the machines.

"Duly noted, how long do you think to set this all up?" James asked as quickly as he could. With no sign of Ivizzes or any other friendlies he didn't want to hang around too long in case there was trouble brewing.

"I could have it rigged in a half hour maybe more. Shouldn't we find the others first Cap?" He asked as he begun to unsling his gear.

"We're going to but I want a fallback option in case things don't go as planned." James quickly turned to Arterius and motioned for the turian to watch him. "Arterius stick close to Gerick and see that he doesn't get disturbed. We're going to head deeper into the area. Tap the com three times when it's all set. We clear?" he received two short nods as the two got to work. "Everyone else on me watch the corners for any surprises." And with that the team moved down.

About twenty meters through clanging hammers and huge presses of the stalwart machinery James realized just how hot it was inside the area. The commandos' suits were designed for operations in just about every environment and even had a two hour capacity for any oxygen free environment. But with a thin mask of condensation threatening to obscure his view and beads of sweat flowing across his face he fought the urge to pull of his helmet. Still keeping his weapon at the ready he quickly looked down to his suit's wrist interface that gave a small readout on every system the suit gave its wearer. The environmental seals were holding but it still wasn't being able to compensate for the overbearing heat. James knew that if he was in discomfort than surly Sol'kahf and his much larger would be boiling. Still he had little choice but to push on and find just what was going on here and get the hell out. The odds kept staking against the commandoes and he was determined to find some way to even them.

Ten more meters brought the squad to a small opening through the machine walls and it appeared to lead out into a much larger space. What stopped James however was even with the constant thrumming and slams of the machinery his sensors had managed to pick up chatter about ten meters ahead of him was supposedly the source of the talk and James hoped that they had found there goal once and for all. Then suddenly he heard a voice but it was from his own com unit.

"Delta this is Shadow One, we linked up with Sigma during an engagement. Sigma One is hit bad Delta. He's stabilized for the moment but we need to move quickly. We're at what looks like an entrance into a large area next to dozens of machines, maybe smelters or something what's your status over?" James held his hand up to the helmet link and took a breath before replying.

"Roger Shadow good to hear from you, I think we're directly across from you but I cant risk a visual can you see anything from where your at?" James asked as his team kept at the ready.

"Negative there's a lot of smoke and sparks obscuring the only window we have but... wait. Hold one." The line cut off abruptly and James turned quickly to his squad. "Be ready to move on my signal I don't want any mistakes." Calm nods answered him back just as Troaviel's voice once more filled his ears.

"Delta I have some eyes and ears at the nerve center they linked me to some surveillance units. I found Alpha, they look ok but we've got at least thirty visible hostiles between us and them. About ten more individuals moving large crates through two hatchways one leading out and one leading back in and. Alpha we have a confirm on target Patriot he's near Alpha One. How long till your team is ready to move?" the turian asked over the link.

"We're ready but we've got no eyes on this so I recommend you make the first shot. Instincts will take over and those hostiles will fire at you. We'll move in on the flank take out any sentries and then hit them. What about Patriot, D or A?" James asked as he made sure his weapon was ready and primed.

"Alive command will want him for questioning." Troaviel finished.

"Roger, soon as you send the invite com us once just so we get the message, lot of interference in this place." James replied.

/

"You see krogan we turians always try to find the best means to and end. The best cure for even the slightest disease. Better armor for our trade ships. Better weapons to deal with… our enemy. And of course all this came crashing down some time ago when a ship ten times the size of any known starship in the universe arrived at the Citadel. Now luckily the alliance swooped in to the rescue and with the combined effort of the Citadel fleet they managed to destroy the menace. But it's never that simple, nothing is." Jardron said as he continued his speech to the captured squad. Everything about him seemed to hark superiority, his uniform was finely pressed and even against the oppressive heat it didn't seem to hardly faze him. Ivizzes even though free of his helmet felt as if his crest plates would melt away soon followed by his skin.

Chancing a look to his right he saw the rest of his squad all bound with their hands behind there backs in similar physical straits as himself. One member a salarian named Hoskar seemed to be breathing difficulty while Midor the squad's sole human had several bruises across his once well kept face. As Ivizzes eyes tried to quickly scan for any means of escape he had just enough time to see the turian scientist whip around with a stunner snarling forward. The weapons were used in penal operations to keep inmates stunned rather than killed but this one pulsated a shrill fire across Ivizzes' face where it struck. Instead of going dark his vision seemed to shatter with streaks of blue crossing back and forth as he fought against the surge.

"My own invention actually, designed to… stimulate those who need stimulating to stay alert. Now," He glared at Ivizzes as he patted the weapon in his hands. "when will the next Council kill team arrive upon my humble refuge?

"Even if I knew I would never tell you." Ivizzes growled back as loudly as he could. He'd never been intimidated in his life and he wouldn't start with this quack.

For a moment the turian seemed slightly curious if not childlike. Suddenly however his thoughtful expression changed to a sly and cruel grin. He turned around and grabbed something from a silver table in front of Ivizzes. His image finally coming completely back to focus the krogan noted what it was. In the turians clawed hands he held a Mark Nine Grimke, one of the weapons from the very start of this mission way back on the Citadel. This one however seemed eerily different with small lines that soared across the weapon that had a faint red glow about them that was growing brighter and brighter. As the scientist moved forward once more he spoke to Ivizzes.

"One last time, when will the team arrive?" after two minutes of silence the turian abruptly turned and squeezed the trigger on the weapon. A scorching beam of red energy leapt out of the weapon and erupted across Hoskar's screaming face. Ivizzes fought against his constraints will all his pent up rage as suddenly his squadmate's head disappeared in a flurry of red embers. Something in the back of Ivizzes mind registered that if Hoskar hadn't been supported by the restraints his body would have fallen flat onto the steel floor below them. Ivizzes spat out a curse in his native tongue but it seemed to do little in dulling Jardron's amusement.

"Impressive isn't it. All these years we thought we'd hit the pinnacle of technology when we discovered the prothean remains and then this. A symbol of just what the future holds, you see my krogan friend when _Sovereign_ arrived in with his geth armada many people thought they saw the end approaching, but to me and my friends we saw the beginning of something extraordinary. Working under intense secrecy we worked day and night procuring every scrap of the wrecked starship we could find. For weeks we found nothing and feared the Alliance had spoiled our chances but then our scientists found it. A single remaining power core that rightfully implemented could save us from the eventual return of the Reapers. Of course naturally when we brought our findings to the Hierarchy they branded us as traitors and confiscated the core. Somewhere down the line it was given over to a secret branch at the ERC and we were only too happy to liberate it back from them. Nobody understood nobody understands now this weapon is the savior of all life." He finished as he marveled over the product of his life's last year of toil.

"And of course this will give the turians the ability and power to gain control over the council. To bring retribution on the humans for what happened all those years ago." Ivizzes spat out still fighting off the shock of what had happened to Hoskar.

"Jealousy over something like that would not be becoming of a man in my position. But now I have lost my patience and since you remain intolerably stubborn you have proved your uselessness. I'm sure Sadorn will provide a much more willing prisoner." A small twirl of his right hand and a firing squad of four turians approached the suspended cohort members. Ivizzes noticed with almost frantic grimness that they each held one of the Grimkors and the krogan believed Jardron wished to send them off with one final demonstration. Of course that was nothing to the fact that the turian had revealed that there was a mole in the cohort's operation that had seriously jeopardized not only his squad but no doubt every other cohort member on the planet. As the lines along the guns begun to light up, Jardron turned once more to look at the restrained krogan, a sinister sneer crossing his face. "Goodbye my friend." And then quite suddenly all matter of hell broke loose.

/

The first round entered and exited one of the turian's head. The ultrasonic and seemingly unseen ammunition roared through the alien's leather skin followed quickly by more shots toward the being's compatriots. Nina swore aloud as the next shooter she had locked in on dove for cover from the sniper barrage. Bacek firing next to her seemed about to say something and then quickly returned. From the vantage point about one story up from where the turian firing squad had stood Nina and the remaining members of Sigma team and Troaviel's squad poured on the ammo. The turian guards all sprang for cover almost at the same instant but less than a minute later Nina was relieved as she saw James charge forward with the rest of Delta squad from behind a large strand of grinder machines. Renewed as she saw James after they'd separated she fired another burst at a turian that had been tracking the cohort captain. Kinetic barriers rushed to life and beat back the shots but it did force the soldier to roll for cover.

/

With his kinetic barriers flashing under a burst of fire James raced off to the right and headed right for another turian soldier. The leathery skinned being raised its weapon to fire at the new threat but James was quicker. With a right hook with his shotgun the kinetic barriers on the turian seemed to explode under the force and knocked the turian's head back away from James. As his opponent hit the ground the cohort captain hit him in the face with a swift kick from his armored boot. Satisfied his enemy was out of the game James looked up for the next threat. A storm of fire answered his inquiry and James rolled to the right as swiftly as he could while alarms rang off in his helmet that his kinetic barriers were down and in need of a recharge. As another round crashed into the tip of his left shoulder plate James cursed back at the enemy and lit them up with his shotgun.

Twin blasts in quick succession caught at least one of the gunman but the other rushed back under the cover of an over turned crate. James took a second to catch his breath when he heard a slight humming. Turning to his right he saw a red glowing weapon in the hands of a turian guard a few meters away. Though his face was obscured by a mirrored visor James speculated the cruel grin behind the plate.

Suddenly the enemy soldier was spiraling up and backward straight into the steel wall behind the engagement. James saw Cahleura rush off to his right her hands seeming to boil with biotic power. With a flick of the wrist another guard seemed to be yanked down to the floor as if gravity had suddenly tripled on the ground he stood. And the blue glow around her dissipated for a second James saw another guard line the asari up and open fire. Cahleura seemed to shake a little as the rounds hit her exposed armor and started to falter a bit. James' hand quickly found his grenade dispenser and then he hurled the device forward as he dove to protect his teammate. The explosion ripped through the kinetic barriers of the would be victor and a charred weapon clanked to a stop near where James knelt up making sure Cahleura would survive. Her chest plate was pockmarked by dozens of small holes but there seemed to be only a few penetrating shots.

"Thanks for the save captain." Cahleura managed as James grabbed the medi-gel from her pack and pressed it firmly to her wounds. Just over his head James could just feel a barrage of pellets flying past his helmet.

"Keep pressure and apply what you can. Stay low." He ordered her as he collected his weapon. Miraculously his shields had managed to recharge in the few moments of peace and with conviction in his mission fueling his mind he raced forward to his next opponent.

/

The ship looked like a dagger cutting its path through the space above the planet. It's angular lines reinforced the image of a black blade that blended in almost seemingly with the backdrop of the stars. Even beyond its shadowy exterior the vessel had the latest stealth technology that money could buy and it was rumored by its crew that at least five designers had been killed as to make sure no other ship of its class would come to fruition.

Standing on the bridge of the sleek vessel the turian known as Nevis stared out onto the planet. Off to his left a group of sensor officers a mix of both human and turian looked at there readout displays to make sure everything was in order for the ship's mission. One made a cursory glance towards the turian and then immediately returned to his work fearing that his momentary lapse would earn him swift judgment.

A rare smile appeared on Nevis' lips as he was reminded just what kind of position he had attained over all those years in the organization. Even here as just a humble guest among one of the groups vessels even the lowly rank and file had an immediate fear of just what he might do to them on a whim. You couldn't buy that kind respect that kind of fear. It had to be earned and it was well earned in every aspect.

"Captain is your gunnery crew set and ready?" he asked even though he knew the answer. The gray skinned turian behind him made a glance to a human off to his right. The watch officer made a curt nod in response and then it was the captain's turn to talk.

"Of course sir all systems are running at top efficiency. We only await your order." The turian spoke sharply making sure every word carried the weight the answer required.

"Very well. Our operative has ten units to report in. If there is no report on the exact frequency I told you than unleash your might on the site." Nevis said coolly. The captain of the ship nodded and relayed the orders off to his subordinates making sure every detail was ready for the operation. There would be no mistakes here. If there were it would be the last of whoever made them.

/

Nina dropped her overheated sniper rifle on the ground next to her and grabbed the Thunder VII assault rifle from her armor's back magnetic locks. As the weapon came to full size she fired a short burst trying to keep Jardron pinned down behind the overturned table he'd found for cover. The rounds pierced the metal but once more the scientist had inched forward to avoid the fire. Nina knew that his shields would recharge any second and it would be more time where her friends could die.

Over the roar of gunfire all around however she heard Troaviel's voice. Not over the helmet link but from somewhere just behind her.

"We need to move Nina." He said as she fired another burst down.

"We have the best advantage and angle here why would we." Suddenly she cut herself off as she felt pressure being applied to the small of her back. She couldn't see the object but it felt dangerously like the muzzle of a pistol ready to fire the instant she tried anything.

"I mean we need to move so you can stop firing on my allies." Troaviel's cool and a bit eerie voice said to her. Slowly turned around she saw the turian squad captain had his pistol right in front of her unwavering and almost completely motionless. "We can't have you ruining our operation. Walk." The edge in his voice caught Nina off guard and then she registered just what was happening.

'How could this be happening?' her brain thought as she mulled over everything. Before she could say anything more she heard Troaviel's voice once more. "Yes it is the real me Nina but I'm just not one of the council's lackeys any longer." He seemed to hiss as he brought her down a stairway. Just ahead of her and descending along the same path Nina could see the rest of Sigma squad each being watched over by the remainder of Troaviel's troop. The once friendly turians all kept their weapons at the ready should any of the captured moved in a way they didn't like. Amongst the detained Nina noticed Bacek as well as found some solace in that, though she realized it wouldn't last much longer. Her thoughts also left toward where James and Delta were still fighting the remaining guards. Without Sigma's support they'd be hard pressed and surely outnumbered. As these thoughts cascaded through her mind she realized they were approaching the gunfire she had seen from afar and whatever was about to happen she knew it couldn't be good.

/

James bit down on his tongue as he fought through the pain. Off to his right his attacker had caught him off guard as he moved toward Jardron and now the pain ebbing through his arm reminded him even with shields he wasn't a one man wrecking crew no matter how much he wished. He was however part of a team and he was grateful to watch as Tholam appeared beside him firing away with a procured shotgun. The attacker was lanced through with the short range attack and fell backward with his armor's chest piece disintegrating before his eyes. Tholam helped James to his feet as Sol'kahf and appeared by there side with a pistol in one hand and a large blade in the other. As the trio moved forward with Tholam and James keeping up suppression fire the broulian warrior hurled the blade forward toward a turian trying to help Jardron get out of his cover. The blade sank right into the armored warrior piercing both the barriers and his armored plates. With a bit of a grunt the soldier fell backwards and Jardron disappeared once more.

"Jardron! Come out there and surrender now you're out of options." James bellowed as he noticed also that most of the firing had stopped. He turned to see that Arterius and Gerick had arrived on the scene and had secured the area. In the momentary distraction however James failed to see Jardron rise up with one of the peculiar guns in hand. James' eyes once more fell on the battered turian and grew wide rapidly as he realized his mistake.

As the gun fired James saw a lance of red energy streaking toward him but suddenly he was pushed away out of the path of the blast. James landed on his back and had just enough time to watch as the beam intercepted with Sol'kahf upper torso. As the beam disappeared James watched as the hulking broulian struggled to stand and then fell backwards landing in a heap. From where he was James could just see where a raggedy edged hole seemed to gape at him from the broulian's chest plate. Sol'kahf's eyes however were an even more grievous sight as they started onward past what any being alive could see. Compelled by the sight the cohort captain roared and charged forward to Jardron. The turian looked up as if momentarily shocked and then realized the weapon needed ten seconds to recharge but it was too late.

James first punch landed square across Jardron's jaw. Without a helmet to protect his angular features the armor gloved strike shattered the jaw and it sagged over to the right slightly. But James wasn't finish yet. Grabbing his survival knife from his belt he striked again and again into Jardron's chest and neck. In his rage James could barely notice the pools of blood as they stained the once bleach white clothes. The only thought through his mind was to kill the monster and avenge everyone who'd died because of him. Sol'kahf, Signius and his men, O'Kreamer and her squad even all those people at the Red Bastion and the Citadel. All had their blood on this man's hands.

Suddenly James realized he was flying through the air and that Jardron and the ground had left him. He fell back to the ground in a heap and then turned to see Cahleura limping toward him and realized she'd flung him away from Jardron.

"Captain we need him alive or everything we did here is for nothing!" Arterius yelled out as he and Gerick closed on James.

"Stay back! I don't care about it anymore." James shouted back as he fought to stand straight. "All this… all this blood it's all on him." James bellowed as he pointed a finger back to where he'd left Jardron. Now slightly back to his senses he realized blood soaked his extended finger and that both his arms and chest were splattered with the turian's blood. Focusing once more on Jardron he saw Tholam bending down near Jardron.

"He's going to die if we don't evac now. I sent a transmission back to the beacon for hard drop retrieval but I didn't hear anything from Sigma or Shadow." The salarian noted as it patched on a field dressing as it tried to stop the blood.

Something registered in James mind and he recalled Ivizzes. Then suddenly a mighty hand grasped his shoulder. For a moment he thought it was Sol'kahf but when he turned around a reptilian face simply stared back at him.

"Fields I know what its like. The rage the blood lust, there will be a time for all that I lost one of my own men and one's not liable to make it out of here. There will be a time for morning but not now. Right now we have to act and that means you need to wake up and get back in control!" Ivizzes eyes looked as if they could have slapped James' themselves but the talk had snapped him out of his daze if at least for the moment.

With a curt nod James looked to where Arterius was releasing the rest of the team. The two other krogan in the team seemed well off but the human and the sole salarian and turian members looked as if they would fall forward after released. With a grimace James noted one member salarian most likely was without a head and gazed down to where Sol'kahf lay. "Secure the area we need to lock everything down make sure there's no more surprises." he managed to say. Ivizzes looked back at him and then relayed off commands to his fellow krogan. The two massive beings nodded in response and then procured weapons from fallen turians so as to be ready for anything.

As they made sure all the other turians in the vicinity were dead and that Jardron would make it willing the grey fleet arrived with support. James recalled something Tholam had said. "Sigma Shadow this is Delta. I'm with Alpha and we've secured the primary what's your status over?" James asked as he heard a faint metallic click somewhere behind him. Raising his shotgun up he suddenly realized it was the missing squads. In front of the group he saw Nina and Bacek but both were missing their upper torso plates and only had their body gloves. James was about to say something when Troaviel opened his mouth.

"That's close enough James why don't you put the weapons down." After a moment's hesitation the turian kicked the back of Nina's legs and she fell forward kneeling in front of Troaviel. One of his conspirators brought Bacek and the rest of Sigma team as well before he spoke again. "Now! I won't repeat myself."

James and Ivizzes exchanged glances and realized they really didn't have many options. The entire group was spent over the last hours work and was in no way fit for another fight no matter the seriousness. The only way he figured was to try to reason. As he set down his weapon the rest of his team followed suit and he turned back to Troaviel. "What is it worth to you? This betrayal what's worth becoming a traitor Marhkis?"

For a moment Troaviel seemed to think over his answer but soon enough he replied back. "It's not a matter of money or blackmail James I thought you knew me better than that. Look when the Reapers return there isn't going to be a war its just going to be a slaughter. This was the only way we could be sure we'd have a fighting chance."

"You mean the turians would have a chance while the rest of us all die. You're no better than him, turian." Ivizzes growled but whereas normally he kept most of his anger out of his voice James definitely picked up anger and hatred as he spoke. "You're going to sell out every other being in the galaxy. Make them slaves and make it look like you're the heroes. I heard from your wiz kid already."

"He's delusional about what we set out to do and you are misled. This is all about everyone else not some repercussion from the First Contact War. This is about galactic survival." Troaviel finished as he kept his eyes pealed for any threat.

"And that justifies the killing of innocents, to create this weapon?" James said as he looked back to Sol'kahf and then to where Nina knelt.

"The few for the many James I'm sure you know the validity of that. I recall you believed that once upon a time." Troaviel rebuked back at him.

With this James fought every measure of his being not to rush the turian and finish it right there. He knew it would do no good but he couldn't stand here doing nothing. A smile seemed to cross Troaviel's features and then one of his conspirators suddenly whirled around a blue haze encasing his weapon hand. The assault rifle aimed right at Troaviel but the turian was quick and sidestep away from the burst. As the rounds bounced off pointlessly against the wall he clipped his ally with his left hand and then found the source of the disturbance right as James did.

Cahleura to her credit was trying to look as in conspicuous as possible but Troaviel had caught the subtle hand movements and the deep concentration. "Kill the asari!" he ordered as he raised his weapon forward.

"Noooooo!" Bacek cried out as he kicked out with his leg tripping the turian nearest him. Unbalanced the soldier fell back dropping his assault rifle. Plucking it from its drop with the finesse of an old western gunslinger Bacek leveled the rifle square at Troaviel but both had each other in each others' sights. Shots rang out and suddenly Bacek was down clutching a gapping would where the rounds had sliced through his left shoulder and almost seriated all the connection to his arm. The distraction allowed James and Sol'kahf to spring into action and charge forward. Two of the four turians fell easily against unexpected attack and the remaining two tried to run for cover but the rest of Sigma joined the fight and wrestled them down to the floor. Ivizzes appeared beside the beleaguered squad and made sure they had the prisoners secure. Looking up he noticed that both James and Troaviel were gone and nowhere to be seen. The krogan swore and then turned to Nina. "You need to go and find the rest of Troaviel's unit we don't know if this was just a turian party or what but we can't take any chances. Take Tholam and Arterius and see what you can…"

His last words were cut off when a massive explosion ripped through the wall about a dozen meters to their left. The force of the blow knocked Sigma and the Delta squadmates down but the prisoners didn't appear to be in any hurry to run. As Ivizzes and Nina looked at the wreckage they realized there was no going back now. A crater now appeared where a large chunk of the facility had stood and looking past it both saw there was no way past it back the way they'd come.

"What in the hell was that?" Nina asked as her eyes scanned for another avenue of escape. As she looked around she just saw James racing after something she knew had to be Troaviel. As she moved after him she felt Ivizzes grasp her arm and hold her.

"It's an orbital bombardment. They're going to blow the facility from space." As the words left the krogan's mouth they felt another blast hit the building.


	30. Embers of Betrayel

Nina raised her hands up to cover herself from the falling rubble she anticipated, but when nothing had fallen on her and she looked upward. The factory area's ceiling was holding up, at least for the moment but the cohort member could already see the telltale signs of a collapse forming all across it. Then she quickly turned back to where she'd seen James run after Troaviel. Knowing the turian might have one more trick up his sleeve she didn't feel comfortable letting James handle it on his own.

Ivizzes snarled as he and Tholam propped up Jardron. The turian was still loosing a massive amount of blood and without a top quality medical unit to aide him in the near future Jardron wouldn't make it. As the massive being hefted up his failing baggage he turned curtly to the salarian commando. "Get everyone together we're going to exit through the entrance my team arrived from." He saw Tholam blink rapidly in understanding and then watched as the salarian headed off towards where Cahleura helped prop Bacek up. The turian's left arm was now just a stump just below his shoulder and Arterius had done his best to seal the wound with as much bandage as possible. As Ivizzes tried to make sure he had a firm hold of Jardron he eyed one of the weapons he had seen the scientist use on Hoskar. After a moment of thought he shifted the weight of the turian slightly and then grabbed the weapon. As he secured it to his armor he reaffirmed his hold on the limp form and then continued. 'We're not leaving here with nothing, no matter what.' He thought to himself as he continued.

Moving to check out his own squad he saw all they were relatively still in good form except of course for Hoskar. The reptilian being turned to one of his fellow species and spoke. "Ovfgan go grab Hoskar, we're not leaving anyone behind!" he ordered as he moved towards the start of the assembly lines preparing to exit the area.

"Captain Ivizzes I can't find James or Nina." Tholam spoke as he rushed up alongside the krogan.

"Nina went after the captain; she knows what happening we have to get out of here they'll be right behind us." He snarled trying not to sound agitated over the total toll he was operating under. Tholam seemed to pause for a moment and then brought up the rearguard as the motley group entered the rows of machines. Somewhere off in the distance they heard another explosion rock the building and moments after they fought to stay balanced as the entire area shook from the shockwave. Taking one look back Ivizzes preyed James and Nina knew what they were doing.

/

James staggered out of the doorway into a relatively unscathed space. As he tried to take in the entire area he realized now just how bad his vision was in the helmet and he eagerly popped the seals while keeping his weapon at the ready with his right hand. As the helmet fell to the floor James saw that the area appeared to be a large hanger of some sort and it currently held two small sized cargo haulers. Loading machinery was moving speedily back and forth loading large canisters into the ships and James had no doubt they were the weapons that Jardron had created at this facility. On the docking ramp of one of the ships James saw Troaviel rushing up the ramp signaling to two more turians to get the ship ready to go. With adrenaline coursing through him James rushed full force toward the ship and raised his pistol. Two shots caught the first crewmen in the face while a third caught the other square in the heart. Neither had any armor to protect them and fell backward off the ships. James saw the remaining turian reach for his weapon right as he shouted.

"DROP IT MARHKIS!" James shouted as he fired toward Troaviel's torso. The rounds tore forward and hit the turian traitor alongside his chest. He turned slightly from the pain but was still reaching for his pistol. One more shot from James' own pistol ripped through the casing of the turian's weapon and caused it to fall to the ground useless. James caught his breath as he kept his pistol locked dead on with both hands as he continued. "Don't make me do it Marhkis. You know I will."

The turian slowly looked up to where James stood a mere seven meters away and then slowly raised his hands. "Alright James you have proved your skillfulness at weaponry. Now how are your negotiation skills?" Troaviel asked coolly as he fought the pain from the wound he'd received.

"There's no negotiation Marhkis, either you surrender and we bring you in or you die right there right now. Your choice." James said as he kept the weapon immobile ready to finish the threat the moment he caught any signs of movement.

"No I didn't mean my negotiation, I meant…hers." Troaviel hissed as James heard a faint noise somewhere around him. Checking over Troaviel quickly to see that he really was unarmed he glanced back to his left. Just off to his left he saw another turian soldier weapon at the ready but the weapon wasn't trained at him it was trained at.

"Nina!" James cried out as he swept the pistol over to the turian. The soldier had a decisive hold on her and his pistol was right next to her neck should James try anything. Keeping his aim on the captor James turned quickly back to Troaviel. "That's it, you're going to stoop this low what about your honor is that worth nothing now?" he said before he turned back to Nina.

"My honor is no concern of yours at the moment, the only thing that concerns you is choosing who. Me or her." From the ship James heard the engines powering up and knew the seconds were ticking down till his decision. Finally he turned back to Troaviel.

"I know my choice, it would be the same as Nina's." he said as he slowly looked downward almost in disgrace. From where Troaviel watched on a small smile creased across his lips as he turned to nod at his fellow turian. Suddenly however James pistol snapped to the right as he brought his head up again. The pistol in his hand bucked slightly as he let loose on the ship's gangway. James watched in appreciation as a horde of rounds impacted against Troaviel and sent the turian reeling.

Nina saw the opening and as the turian holding her turned to look at Troaviel she grabbed the knife on his belt and then plunged it right into the turian's neck. As the turian let go of her struggling with enormous difficulty to breath she turned quickly and delivered a snapshot to his groin. Now in immense pain the turian could do little more than try to stop the flow and faltered back gagging. Pulling the knife out as a trophy Nina turned around to see James rushing toward her.

"I" was all he got out before she slapped him across his face. Staring in shock James massaged his cheek where her palm had impacted.

"That was for choosing him over me." Nina snapped as she looked at him with a heated expression. It didn't last long however as she moved close to him and their eyes locked." But this." She paused as she embraced James and let all the worries melt away. For a few scant moments there seemed be only the two of them, no battles no strife just the connection they shared. After a moment lost in the kiss she pulled back. "Is for making the right choice." She said as she beamed back at him. James returned the grin but immediately turned as he heard the ship's engines completely power up. Overhead a massive hanger door split apart and the small ship lurched upward escaping the facility. James thought he could just make out a black shape looming far above them before he came back to his senses.

"We have to go after him." He turned to the other ship and then grabbed Nina's hand as he took her towards it. As they ran he brought his other hand up once more to his com link. "Alpha this is Delta Troaviel is trying to make his escape we're pursuing what's your status."

"Negative on the pursuit Delta we've just exited the base but they've got a ship hammering the whole area with bombardment we need pick up ASAP. Leave him for now James we'll get him I swear, but right now you need to get us the hell out of this inferno." He heard Ivizzes snarl over the com as he and Nina made it to the cockpit. Familiarizing herself with the controls Nina made a quick preflight checklist as James replied with a sight.

"Roger that Alpha, we found a hauler where he made his escape we're in route to your beacon now. Just hold…Woah!" abruptly a massive comet of light suddenly slammed down near the hallway he'd arrived from and shook the very foundations of the building. "Nina get us out of here." He said as the walls began to crumble around the hanger. Suddenly he felt the ship lurch forward and then the engines roared into life pushing them up and out of the area. Nina had to juke quickly as the sensor picked up incoming projectiles from orbit.

"They've got a ship in orbit looks capitol class. Where is the pickup fleet?" She swore as she guided the ship through a narrow pattern through the destruction. All around the fiery projectiles burned downward reducing the facility to scorched ruins.

James' own thought traveled to where the grey fleet was supposed to be. Without the fleet the cohort squads had no hope of escape. The small ship had no mass drive and no hope of escaping the area to any safe haven. James realized it wouldn't be that much of a problem if they didn't even get to Ivizzes' position. "We'll worry about that later just get to the site." James said as he settled into the copilot's seat. The ship jolted to the left and James just managed to buckle in before he jerked violently to the right. After a couple more minutes of horrendous turbulence they made it through the firestorm and out across the jungle greens that covered the majority of the planet. It took them another twenty minutes to locate Ivizzes and the rest of the squad. As James stepped down the ramp panning over the battered squad he motioned for them to come aboard. Suddenly however he realized all the commandoes would be a tight squeeze in the small hauler and turned to Ivizzes.

"Captain we need to see if we can offload some of the cargo aboard. Make some more space for our wounded and..." his voice trailed off to where several black sealed body bags lay across the jungle floor.

Ivizzes nodded and then slapped him hard on the shoulder bringing James back into focus. "Stay with me Fields we're not out of this yet." The krogan grumbled as the two headed to the rear access port of the hauler. Contacting Nina on the com James asked her to unlock the exterior locks and the hatch lifted open with a shrill squeal of low maintenance gears.

"By the Hunt." Ivizzes said in astonishment as he looked onward. Inside dozens of crates were staked in a precise and orderly fashion. The cases were unmarked but in the flight over several had been cracked open and their contents were spilled out for the two to see. From the crates several of the modified Grimkors were visible and James counted it as a fair guess that it was a similar deal with the rest of the crates. "Perhaps this mission won't be a complete disaster. We can dump most of these but if we bring some samples back to the Citadel we might get an edge on these bastards." Ivizzes snarled in amusement at the thought of catching the masterminds behind this with their own creations.

James worked things over and agreed with Ivizzes. As they begin unloading a few of the crates James heard Nina's voice spill over the com link. "James Ivizzes get in the ship now. That ship in orbit is realigning and it's headed toward us fast." She cried out as James heard the engines of the ship roar to life once more.

"Let's go now!" James shouted as Ivizzes and the human captain closed the hatch once more. Together than ran around the exterior of the ship and headed aboard the ship. Just as James' boots hit the metallic floor Nina lifted the ship up once more. With the sudden movement catching him unaware, James slid across the gangway and almost collided against the wall as he got his balance again. Ambling to the through the main interior space he watched as one of Ivizzes' men trying to sustain Jardron. The turian continually shook and appeared on the verge of death and James mentally reprimanded himself for being so volatile with the key to the mission. If Jardron died the blood of Sol'kahf, Ivizzes' troops and everyone else would be on James' hands. Least of all He'd be removed from the Cohort as soon as they hit the deck. There'd be time to dwell he knew but right now it was pointless and he willed himself forward back into the cockpit.

Nina's hands flashed across the controls as she did everything in her power to keep the ship in one piece. What ever the ship was up there it had teeth and without and mass drive she knew her only option was to run to ground but first she'd need to survive the current barrage and then find some way to loose the capitol ship's tracking. Behind her she heard James approaching and the former marine resumed his position beside her.

"Push the reactor to ninety percent the only way we'll loose those guns is if we can outrun them and even that isn't the best option but it's the only one we have." She spoke to him as calmly as she could manage. The hauler was a far cry from a vessel of war but it did have Turian designed Mark III Vakulmilon Reactor. For such an expensive piece on such a mundane ship Nina calculated that the ships could be on loan from gunrunners or smugglers and put the thought aside for examination later. As she veered daftly left and right she though she'd be able to ward off the gunners for a long enough time that the cannons would require a quick recalibration. In the small time it would take Nina would engage the ship's boosters and head north to the planet's polar caps and try to find somewhere with enough interference to allow them to land without fear of being obliterated from orbit. It was a stretch but without any recovery ships they'd be hard-pressed to…

Abruptly the ship careened sideways at it was hit by one of the projectiles from above. Damage readouts spilled across the screen and James scanned over the assessment. "The shot tore through are hull and hit couplings routed to the cooling vents. If we keep this up the engines are going to overheat and burn out." James noted as alarms began to blare.

Before Nina could reply the damage readouts went blank and the ship's power abruptly faded in and out for a moment. Fearing the overheat and eventual conclusion of that possibility she began lowering the landing gear as well as boosting what little reserve power they had from the emergency core. Seconds after the ship's engines sputter and died starting the small transport banking down back to the planet surface in a deathly dive.

"Shut down all systems and reroute them to the secondary core and I'll try to use the boosters directly through the reactor. It's a long shot but we have no time to get the engines back online." As the ship shook violently Nina could just see the ground rushing up to meet them. James quickly shut off all the excess systems and Nina lost the elevation monitor. As she primed the system for the desperate maneuver James held onto the console and braced himself. As the ship broke through the tree canopy Nina ignited the boosters using every scrap of energy the ship had left. Of course she hadn't anticipated just how much power she'd get from the boosters and suddenly the ship was crashing through the tangle of trees. Were it not for their safety harnesses the two would have flown through the viewport. Rather quickly however the boosters died as quickly as they'd started and Nina found the ship had lodge itself between a collection of trees in its last lunge forward.

James' hands moved across the console quickly as he brought up the systems once more. "We need to get airborne again before they get another lock on us we may have bought a few…"

Suddenly one of the console's screens powered on and Troaviel's face stared back at the pair. "Ah how fitting the two of you made it out of the facility, I knew you could do it." The overall shock of the betrayal still lingered on in James and he fought to find the best reply under the circumstances.

"Marhkis after all this time, why are you doing this?" James asked as calmly as he could. The stoically faced turian simply stared back at him with a hint of ancientness.

"Because they will win James, no matter what we do no matter how much we try or how long we persevere they will win. It is inevitable. If we cannot beat them we will join them, this is the only way. I give you this chance now to join us, I know you are a reasonable individual." For a moment the turian seemed to speak to someone off screen before his gaze returned to the cohort captain. "What is your choice my friend?" he asked stanchly as his deadly gaze returned.

Before James could even think however the screen before him abruptly began to shake and Troaviel appeared to loose his balance.

"Cut the transmission, Now!!" someone yelled and suddenly the image went blank and left Nina and James relatively alone. For a moment they just sat their waiting to see if the communications resumed until James unclasped his harness once more.

"Whatever's going on I'm going to check out the squads see if there…." His voice was cut off when he heard an unmistakable voice patched through the cockpit speakers.

"To anyone out there this is General Hetui of the Citadel Defense Group Cohort broadcasting on all channels. If anyone is receiving this please respond." The voice was like a beacon in the harshest darkness and James immediately activated the com unit.

"General this is Delta Lead. We need emergency med units standing by we have multiple criticals we need some assistance ASAP." James practically yelled into the mike.

"Confirm Delta One we'll get a team groundside to you immediately." There was a slight pause before the voice continued. "Delta I want a SITREP on the mission. We come in right on top of a capitol ship trying to destroy the key facility and we're receiving your signal from a wrecked hauler. Just what in space happened here?" Hetui asked as Nina finally seemed to relax in the chair next to James.

"I'll fill you in as soon as we're aboard General. For now suffice to say we've got a whole new set of problems on our plate." James said as he finished the communiqué.

About two hours later with a quick refresher trip and a new uniform James made his way to the debrief with the General. He had made sure that everyone in his squad was being seen too and noted with gladness that Bacek would pull through. For a moment James' thoughts lingered on Sol'kahf but decided to keep that off for the time being. Hetui needed a debriefing ASAP and James felt time was definitely not on their side…

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	31. Rest and Rising Tide

**1**** Hour. 14 Units February 4, 2184 AD**

**Orbit above Platnet Gamma Xeta**

**Aboard JTOP Assault Ship **_Phalanx_

**//Classified POST OP Debrief: Operation "Unmasked Retrieval"//**

General Hetui stared out across the expanse of stars in wonderment. It seemed like such a simple site; an ominous backdrop with pinpoints of light giving evidence to an almost infinite array of planets and stars. And conflicts; Hetui thought as his mind reviewed the recent reports that had passed his eyes in the moments before. Rising tensions in Tobelic Prime and word of increased pirate activity in the Hades Gamma Cluster; everything was on the rise and Hetui needed to make sure that he kept the Cohort regiment at peak efficiency. This news of a new set of problems did not comfort the volus in the least. Ever since he had left his home world he had dealt with adversity. A birth defect had left his lungs in dire straits and an experimental procedure by a turian medical firm was the only thing that had saved his life. But after the operation the young volus had been told that he couldn't survive in his home world's atmosphere even with the full suits that were the norm of his species.

Shortly arriving at a military orphanage in the center of turian controlled space he had been trained in the skills of war by the military academics. Compelled by wounded pride to show that he was not weak or inadequate he had studied longer and trained harder than all those around him. He'd even picked up a spark of turian aggression from his tutors. After about ten years of strenuous training he had emerged as a unique specimen as said by one of his teachers. After training he further segregated himself from his former family and people and adapted to the life of a turian and signed on into the turian military as one of the few volus to participate in active combat duty in a turian military unit. Two years later he was shunted into the 71st Battalion or more commonly called the Seventy Worst. The battalion was best known as the last chance for some of the worst criminals in the hierarchy. For four years Hetui had carved out a path of destruction with his wild soldiers and finished almost every mission given to him. His enemies higher up in the military had thought it would be the end of his career but the plan backfired and supporters of the volus' rise through the ranks rallied with his victories.

All that had fallen behind him however, when he'd been approached by Councilor Anderson and his proposal to train the new defense group. Do to pressure from both allies and opponents alike Hetui had accepted the commission. Now with one of his squads suspected as traitors and severe casualties in the ones that hadn't the General considered just what he'd gotten himself into.

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James stepped onto the bridge of the vessel and was almost swept away by the sheer amount of activity going on in the relatively small space. Everywhere his eyes traveled the area teemed with officers in grey uniforms bearing the badge of the Cohort and it took him awhile to spot the General amongst the crowded individuals.

Coming to attention behind the volus warrior James made sure his movements were crisp and precise, reminding himself that he needed to give every detail possible so that they could come with the right action to the situation. He held his pose for a few seconds before the general turned around and saluted him.

"At ease Fields you and your squads have been through a lot. But I need to hear everything from the time you hit groundside to two hours ago. Don't leave anything out. Hopefully soon Captain Ivizzes will have been patched up and we'll get his collaboration." Every word resounded in James ears as he went over the events in his mind.

It took him a few seconds to recollect everything including what Nina had told him about her time with Sigma squad and without further pause he begun the debrief.

"… they would have finished us off if not for your arrival. Speaking of which just how did you come to arrive here sir if I may ask." James asked candidly as he finished his debriefing.

"This vessel is the first primary addition to the Cohort's naval power. It took Councilor Anderson's tactical speech craft and a lot of lobbying besides to get this much but at least it's the start of something more. With it we have a much more effective mobile deployment base. The edge this will give us should go far against any obstacles we may face. Specifically this newest threat," The general entered in a series of codes into his main console and a holographic display lit up before the two. Troaviel's familiar face appeared before James and he made sure his face remained solid and unemotional. It wouldn't do for him to loose his control now while the betrayal was still fresh in his mind.

"I can sense your frustration Captain, but at this point there's nothing you can do but wait. I'm taking the squad off the active duty roster. I think it's a fair guess that the unit could do with a well deserved rest." Before James could protest the general swept him away with a wave of his hand. "It's already done James there's no point arguing. I know you want to go after Troaviel and finish this once and for all but it's being handled. We've frozen all his assets, stocks and accounts and we've brought in just about anyone who knows or knew him for questioning back at HQ. He's smart and knows our tactics and that makes him a top priority and the millisecond we hear something you'll be among the first to know."

James was about to attempt another outburst when he realized that the general was probably right no matter how much it angered him. It took all his willpower to fight back the urge to hijack the nearest ship and go searching planet to planet until he found the traitor but it wouldn't do him any good. "Very well general, if you hear anything even the vaguest of rumors, can I assure my squad we'll be the first to be sent?" James asked as he looked back to the volus.

The volus nodded solemnly back to the human and then replied. "I'll deliver the news personally captain. Now get back to your squad and debrief and prep them. And this is an order James. While your squad is off duty, enjoy yourself as much as possible. I have a bad feeling things are escalating to the point of no return. Dismissed." Hetui finished as he turned back to the main view screen.

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Eld Gelorte walked with no urgency or apprehension as he neared his goal. 'When one walks to death one should not seem overly eager.' He mused to himself as he passed two pairs of guarded doors before he arrived before one massive barrier. Not even breaking stride Eld moved over to the bio scanner mounted right into the wall and began the security screening. After a minute one chime issued from the unit and the doors yawned open allowing Eld to enter. Sweeping into the medium sized area Eld immediately took note of his surroundings. He'd only been in the place once before and that was for the ceremony of his ascension to the upper ranks of the organization. It held no particular elation in his mind but he always saw it as a pivotal moment that had shaped his life. Just as before there was no sense other than anticipation over whatever would happen this time around.

Before him the agent he knew only as Nevis stood motionless and stoic and right beside him stood Eld's teacher since he'd left Arcturus. The being had never given Eld his name or any other moniker beside teacher but it had been enough for Eld. The human was most likely at least a hundred years old by what Eld had accumulated over the years or service; but with the skin enhancing treatments readily available throughout the universe his teacher looked closer to 60 years of age. Besides a very slight sign of sorrow that he had adopted at one point in time, there were no signs of emotion other than resilience that had always flowed from him

Eld bowed his head reverently to his former teacher and then nodded curtly to Nevis. The two agents rarely met and had never conversed besides the few assignments they were ordered to complete cooperatively but Eld new he was a formidable weapon in the organization. Eld held no contempt for the turian but word had managed to reach him through his sources that Nevis had failed to assassinate the increasingly irritable Councilor Anderson. Years ago such a failure would have resulted in immediate death so Eld was interested in hearing the reasoning behind his survival. Before his thoughts could wander farther his teacher spoke.

"It is good that you have returned safely to the fold my friend, things have not been going" the seasoned individual paused for a moment. "as predicted with some of our plans." His milky blue eyes flashed for a second toward Nevis but quickly moved back to Eld. "Of course such distractions have always been foreseen in our plans. But the loss of personnel and financial stores have caused us to put a hold on some of the other projects in an effort to cut our losses and continue. We're shutting down Project Aries and Galvothor until further notice."

To this Nevis could not hold his tongue further. "How can you say this" Aries is near fruition and Galvothor just got the code of approval from…" but he was quickly cut off by the teacher.

"There is to be no further discussion on this. Even if I wanted to do something about it the situation caused by both of you has humiliated me thoroughly. The mere fact that you still breath is a testament that these are extraordinary times. Such times that the organization will allow your incompetence to be ignored, at least for the time being." The teacher's tone had not changed in the slightest but Eld felt the reprimand as if every one had been a blade cutting across his skin. He had never failed in a task set by his master till the incident at the Citadel. Now he wondered if discretion would have been the better card to play but Eld had no time to deal with the past. As he stood there silent the teacher spoke once more.

"Back to the point however we do know from Sadorn that Project Zeus has succeeded, even with the setback of loosing Jardron. He was a true believer but his own blasted ego got the better of him and he couldn't even kill those Citadel goons. Because of this we will accelerate our plans. Nevis you will go back to the citadel at once, there will be orders awaiting you once you arrive." Nevis bowed quickly and then vacated himself from the room. As he turned to leave the teacher continued and turned his gaze to Gelorte.

"With the loss of Jardron and his team we need to move quickly on Project Ilid. I'm sending you to the Terminus systems. Once there send a message via encryption Delta to me and I will alert you to the rest of your path. Make no mistake, giving you this assignment goes against some of my better judgment but we've been crowded into this corner and will have to make due. If you choose to fail me again it will be the last mistake you make." Finished, the teacher activated his omni-tool and began reviewing several streams of data as Eld bowed to his mentor. Soon enough the doors fell shut behind him as he continued along his path. Slightly troubled by all that was now happening he realized how lucky he was to still be alive and reminded himself that such though was slopping up his performance. If he couldn't even control his emotions at a calm time he'd screw up when the time for action came. Reasserting control he took a deep breath and continued onward to his newest project.

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**7**** Hours . 6 Units March 11th, 2184 AD**

**Planet Rogito Three**

**Hotel Calup'tero**

The sun's rays cascaded downward onto the picturesque beach. The sphere of heat and energy ushered in the new mourning and soon enough its beams crept their way through the hotel room windows and disturbed James' calm dreams. His eyes blinked open lazily as he took in his surroundings. A sea breeze seemed to glide into the quaint room while the room's illumination panels slowly lit up as the sensors registered someone had awoken. Leaning up James took in the most beautiful part of the room.

Lying peacefully beside him was Nina as she had for some time now. After the mission to capture Jardron the two had gotten increasingly closer. And the mandated liberty from the general had allowed them to further kindle their relationship with a time of tranquility and restfulness. Still in state of relaxation the covers that obscured most of here rose slightly up and down as she breathed and James ran a hand through her hair as he kissed her.

The taste of her lips was so reassuring, so calming that James could have remained there for hours. But the dawn was rising and it wouldn't do to not enjoy the little time he had left to relax. Grabbing a pair of shorts and short sleeve shirt James exited the hotel room right onto the still empty beach. Waiting on the small patio was a pair of running shoes that he quickly laced up as he prepared for his early mourning workout.

Even with the relative slow pace that the vacation had taken it stilled seemed like things weren't moving a little too fast. About three days after their extraction, a proper military funeral was held for Sol'kahf and all the other Cohort members who had perished in the raid. The brave soldiers had been given full honors for bravery and courage under fire but it still troubled James that one of his first friends in the unit was gone forever. The ex marine felt he would probably never get used to the feeling but it was something that he had experienced before. In the alliance he had lost friends and comrades in the line of duty and he knew deep inside it was probable that the feeling of dread would return while he continued in a military career. But when he'd entered the Cohort it felt like starting over, a fresh start to leave everything before in the past where it belonged. 'But nothing ever stays buried.' James mused to himself as he jogged across the beach. The tide just stopped short of his route as he went but the calm gentle rhythm of the ocean seemed to quell his troubled mind.

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**19 Hours 5 units March 12****th**

**Divorpe Minor. 'The Wastes' **

'**Fort Pride' Black-Lion Mercenary Instillation. **

**[Formerly System Alliance Outpost Uthilow] **

Larick Henison hated his current occupation. For twelve years he'd been a paper pusher in the System Alliance Intelligence Agency working a dead end job because the results from the mandatory psyche evaluation during marine training had claimed he was quick to anger, and prone to uncontrollable outbursts of violence. At the time Henison really hadn't known what to say about the evaluation. He'd led a regular life back on earth until finishing primary school and had always wanted to serve in the Alliance. And even though he hadn't made it into the marines he still was serving the Alliance even though quite differently then he'd imagined. The twelve years had ended with a wakeup call when a representative from the Black-Lions had approached him with an offer. Help them find some 'unused resources' for them to allocate and they'd set him up for life. The deal seemed to true and it was. The unused resources turned into Alliance bases with the smallest amount of guard personnel and the setup for life meant he'd become a criminal in the eyes of the alliance. Now with five years under his belt playing sentry for the company that'd ruined his life Larick had decided it was time for a final career change.

As he stood guard on one of the watch towers for one of the first bases he had helped Black-Lion 'allocate' he checked his watch once more. The small amount of anxiety that had started to move through him must of made him move quickly because his partner turned at the movement.

"You keep looking at the time as if your life depended on it. What's the deal." Aarons asked him as the larger man looked back to him with a little bit of interest. Larick had never bothered to learn the man's first name.

"Nah nothing just waiting till we get off the shift, trying to make sense of it all." Larick said as he turned back away from.

"Make sense of it, heh. What's to make sense we have to freeze our asses off out here until 22 hours. Then we get to…. Hey pass me the binocs, we got a vehicle approaching. Looks like a military rover, we got anyone on the list for tonight." The former marine grunted as he lifted the pair of binoculars to his eyes.

"Nobody official it's more of a surprise visit." Larick said coolly as he slipped his hand into his duster.

"Surprise for who?" Aarons asked calmly as he turned back to Larick. This time when he turned back to Larick however he was surprised to see a drawn pistol in the older merc's hand. Without hesitation Larick shot him twice in the body and once in the head to make sure he wouldn't cause any trouble.

"Surprise for you and all these other scum." Larick said steely as he activated the com bead in his ear. For a moment there was only static and the a deep somber voice spoke from the other line.

"Enter activation code." The voice said slowly as Larick knelt down to pick up Aarons' access codes.

"Epsilon Nine Omega." Larick said as he himself raised the binoculars to track the approaching vehicle. The slate grey attack rovers were eerily silent as they grew larger and larger. Larick estimated he had two, three minutes tops before they arrived. His concentration was interrupted as a voice answered back on his com unit.

"Good to hear from you Kathis, what's the situation?" The voice asked as Larick turned back inward to observe the base.

"One sentry down and the base is on alert status one. Nobody suspects a thing. I want the credits wired to my account…" Larick started as he made mental notes of guard positions.

"Your payment will be wired to you as soon as my team has secured the facility Kathis. Be patient in ten minutes you'll be well set off for wherever the galactic winds take you."

Larick snarled at the reply and then brought the binoculars back to the rovers. "That was not our arrangement. The deal was that once I got you to the base you transfer the funds. I'd hate to see your precious team be obliterated by those security drones."

The voice laughed over the com channel. "Save your threats for someone with the time. You'll get your money you impatient bastard, just make sure to keep your head down…"

Larick was about to reply when he caught himself. 'Best not to push my luck, not with this kind of payout anyway.' He silenced his com unit and hunkered down as the rover made it to the gate and all hell broke loose. As screams of former comrades filled his ears and the constant drum of combat stormed all around him Larick did his best not to think of just how many people he had just ordered the deaths of…


	32. Retribution Awaits

**20 Hours 13 units March 12****th**

**Divorpe Minor. 'The Wastes' **

'**Fort Pride' Black-Lion Mercenary Instillation. **

**[Formerly System Alliance Outpost Uthilow] **

The helmeted commando dropped the last body collected onto the pile. Moving away from the pile of the dead mercenaries the commando nodded to his squad leader. The overall angular and sleek design of the helmet betrayed the being's turian heritage as the squad leader looked at the former protectors of the base. As the turian leader looked over the collected bodies one more time he turned to one of his commandoes.

"Burn it." He said with no trace of emotion in his tone. The commando nodded and raised his flamethrower. Spilling liquid flame onto the bodies the commando made an impromptu pyre for the mercenaries who had once called the base home. As the bodies burned under the immense heat the squad leader moved on toward the entrance of the base. Signaling to the slicer in his squad to get to work on the door the squad leader raised a three fingered hand to his neck and activated his com unit.

"How long has it been since you completed your objective?" he asked the commando on the other end as the slicer gave him the signal that the doors were ready to open.

"30 units." A quick and energetic voice answered him back as he nodded back to the slicer.

Within a moment the doors opened up before the squad leader and he entered in keeping his eyes trained for any sign of movement. He trusted the other commando had done his job to the specifications but the turian knew you didn't get far in this kind of work relying on others. When the situation turned to ruin all you had was yourself to rely on and if you didn't want to end up like those mercs you made sure you were ready for when the time came. As he made his way into the main entrance space he saw that the other commando had been successful. All around other mercs wearing the uniform of the Black-Lions mercenary outfit lay frozen in their last moments of life. Each one clung to their throats in a seemingly unanimous attempt to grab their last breath.

It had been a futile move. The chemical agent his fellow squad mate had introduced into the instillation's airways was rather quick and effective. 'Exactly the way I need to continue running this op' the squad leader reminded himself. Raising his hand to his com unit one more time he opened the channel.

"Nine how are we at finishing up all the loose ends?" The squad leader asked as he led his three man squad deeper into the instillation.

"It's done One, the facility is ours." The commando on the other end replied.

The squad leader nodded to the comments as his team entered into the command center of the facility.

"It's done One, the facility is ours." The commando said keepings his voice as unwavering as the gun against his helmet. As the line finished escaping his mouth he turned slightly toward the man holding the weapon.

"It's done…" The commando said as he looked at Larick. The commando had attempted to sneak up on the traitor to complete his objective of cleaning up the loose ends of the mission but he had underestimated one thing. People who betray other people know how other traitors work and they're highly suspicious of those they choose to work with.

"You did well, shame it had to be you?" Henison said as he pulled the trigger on the shotgun. As the body of the commando fell limp a million things flashed through Larick's mind. Knowing he was a dead man for sure unless he did something Larick knew he had to act fast. Descending down from the sentry area Larick stealthily avoided the other commandoes around the area. Making his way to one of the rovers that had brought the commandoes in Henison opened up his omni tool and hacked into the rover's security system and unlocked the vehicle. Making sure no one was around Larick hopped into the vehicle and powered up the engine. As he sped away from the compound he calculated just who he'd need to bribe to get out of this mess.

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James finished off the mixed drink and placed the empty glass on the bar table and turned back to Bacek as his turian friend continued nursing his own glass. It had taken the turian a bit to get used to the vacation time and the change from military attire to civilian clothes and a much looser attitude and demeanor for their time of relaxation. You get so used to fighting and being wary and looking over your shoulder all the times it was hard not to always be on edge. James felt it was easier for him just because he had learned to value such time for the opportunity it was, even as early as his time in the Alliance Marines.

And so as he watched a simple weather report and another drink was brought to the military commando as he let the gentle tropical breeze wash across his skin. What little time the group had left before things started to escalate again would be well spent enjoying their time off. James was not one to disagree with his own thoughts on the matter and as the cold liquid slipped down his throat he did his best to relax.

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**10**** Hours . 2 Units March 12th, 2184 AD**

**Planet Rogito Three**

**Hotel Calup'tero**

**CH Watch house**

At a secret watch house a human and a salarian stood guard with their eyes at full attention as they watched various cameras as they maintained a calm vigil over those in their charge. The watch base had been set up to ensure that the commandoes from the Citadel weren't harmed while they were on leave. The last thing the Citadel and it's leadership needed was for one of their elite units to be killed while they were soaking up rays. The safe house didn't have a lot of creature comforts or anything but the two agents weren't on hand to lounge around. They both had a job to do so they continued their monotonous task. Suddenly a different piece of equipment was warranting their attention and the human quickly reached for the receiving device.

"Station One here. Yes sir…but sir they're still technically on leave. I'm pretty sure that the General will have me sent to an arctic post if I, very well sir. I'll let them know." The watch officer said quickly before closing up the communication line. The human didn't think it was right to cut anyone's shore leave but it appeared that times were getting more and more desperate. With quick efficiency the officer taped in a quick series of commands into his terminal setup and opened up a communication line to the Hotel Calup'tero.

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Looking over a pamphlet that showed off a variety of deep tissues massages James wondered what it must be like to lead a life of luxury and always be used to such environments and relaxation. James had always been a soldier, always fought, it never occurred to him that there would be anything besides that. Even as he finished off the tangy tasting liquor the special ops soldier watched some of the other members in his unit as they lounged around by the pool when suddenly he heard footsteps approaching rather quickly. Instinct took over and the short haired human had his hand resting comfortably near his glass in case he'd have to employ an improvised mode of attack.

"Captain Fields it's time to go. The Council requires you and your squad to report for duty in exactly 12 hours." The human said as he and a late arriving salarian partner arrived bar side.

Gritting his teeth as he turned back to look at his fellow soldiers before he returned his attention to the watch officer. A soldier's work was never done it appeared. Finishing off his drink and resting the glass back to the bar's surface James and Bacek left their seats to gather the rest of the team. Whatever this newest emergency was it appeared that rest was not one of their tactical options.


	33. Knights of Destruction

**18 Hours 35 Units March 21st 2184**

**Planet Omega**

**An alley outside Ulcen's Bar**

Blood curling screams erupted outside the bar in one of the more war torn districts on Omega. James turned his head ever so slightly as Bacek broke the man's third finger in less than a minute. The Cohort operative was just as strong willed as the next special operations soldier but torture didn't really sit well with him. Sometimes James applied to the school of thought that what goes around comes around and he would never want any form of torture to come around to him. At least Bacek was handling the operation with a cold head, for Bacek it wasn't about injuring the man or mutilating him it was just the next mission objective as unfortunate as it was.

For about a week now the Cohort squad had been stationed on the Heaven of every thing that didn't belong in Heaven. The Omega station had long served as essentially the polar opposite of the Citadel station and when the General had informed James of the new assignment he really hadn't known what to think. At their theatres of operation so far it was really easy to figure out where to draw the line between enemy and ally. At Omega almost everyone posed a threat to not only the squad's mission but their very lives as well and James wasn't one for suicide missions.

"That's why your cover identity is a merc squad looking for it's next big score. It's work well with Omega cause almost everyone down there is a merc or has been at one time. Besides I figure you don't really ever make the trip to Omega more than once so lets just get it out of the way. Would do for you and your squads to experience some culture." The culture had turned out to be an entire world committed to ideals of selfishness and whoever had the most guns was right. James could wonder at the face his friends back on earth would give him if they'd ever seen a bar like Ulcen's. The place served as a neutral point as well as any such place could on Omega. 10 guards from 10 gangs stood at the entrance points to maintain a struggling truce between the factions. The idea was that if they started a fight or if someone tried to make trouble in the bar then he'd have the full weight of ten gangs on his ass. James didn't know if the method had ever actually worked the way it was supposed to but he was glad for at least some sign of security.

Of course it had made it harder for both him and Bacek to retrieve their friend without drawing too much attention so Bacek had suggested a different method. Beautiful and deadly as always Cahleura had convinced the turian to have one too many drinks while enjoying a very persuasive argument about Asari mating rituals and their nature. The turian had practically been about to fall over and hit his head on the bar when James and Bacek had swooped in under the guise of associates of the man. The guards hadn't given the two a second look as they exited the bar and found an alley way not too far but not too close from the bar. For a moment James had been worried the screams might draw attention but then Bacek reminded him that they were on a planet full of criminals. Screaming was just part of the backdrop.

The turian screaming was a member of Colitri Domus' guard detail. Domus was freelance arms dealer who sold everything from human experimental weaponry to turian knockoffs. 'I've got everything that shoots and all for the right price .' was his motto and James took it too heart. He'd lifted two pistols from turian's gear and found the to be new models with a lot of highly illegal customization. But James and Bacek weren't interested in guns, information was their price and they would get everything they could out of the man.

"I'll ask you one more time and then my partner is going to have to take over. I have to apologize in advance, many of our victims prefer that we take it easy on them but they only find that out after we've decided they want to play hardball." Bacek said coldly with very little if no fake empathy crawling into his voice. The man's face had already received a number of bruises from the encounter but not enough to keep his face from instantly showing more fear at the situation.

"Ok ok ok Ok I'll tell you. Domus is meeting the buyers at the spaceport on 27 Harrow and Beool. It's one of his local hangouts and he's got most of the personnel on his payroll. He uses it for buys that he dosen't even want his suppliers to even know about. That's the truth I swear it."

It was the lead they had hunted tirelessly for over their time on Omega. The main event that had called them from leave was a brutal attack on a former alliance outpost held by a mercenary company. The mercenary company wasn't of much note, they did work throughout citadel space and usually but the attacked they'd suffered had been executed with top grade lethality. The lone survivor from the base had informed the alliance about the attack and willingly surrendered information that he had been the inside man on the job. He claimed he had no idea why the merc base had been targeted since he was kept on low level as a security guard but he had heard rumors that recently the company had come into something big that may have warranted the attack. JTOP and other intelligence assets were working tirelessly to get answers from the company but a lead from the survivor that he had found information on a weapons deal going down on Omega in one of the rovers that the mercs had brought. It wasn't much but eventually JTOP had found a bit more information of the data sheet in the rover. Colitri Domus March 22nd. And with this latest confirmation on a very hush hush deal about to go down James was confident they had found their goal.

Bacek paused ideally before the turian's face before he turned to James. As the squad leader nodded silently the turian commando raised his pistol in his right hand and placed the muzzle firmly on the other turian's skull. Before anyone could breath however Bacek moved his hand with lightning speed and slammed the pistol across the turian's skull knocking him out for the count. As the turian slumped back against the alley wall James pulled out a capsule of a blue liquid and inserted it into a medical syringe. Applying the drug right into the blood line the turian would wake up with a splitting headache and little memory of the past few hours. Lifting his wallet and taking it along with the man's weaponry James figured he'd assume a mugging and learn a lesson about drinking with flirtatious women in a place like Ulcens. As James and Bacek regrouped with Cahleura the group headed off into the night back to the safehouse where the planning for the trap would need to be arranged. The Cohort squad had been reequipped with new suits of armor for the special missions and their weapons given a thorough overhaul to help their combat efficiency. The only obstacle left in their way was setting up the ambush and dealing with the guard personnel at the spaceport. Then once the trap was sprung they were going to have to get their next set of answers. Whether or not James would rely on Bacek's talents again was going go down to how much the Mercs wanted it to hurt but after what had happened Gama Xeta James was more than willing to let a few people suffer to get the mission accomplished.


	34. Horizon Strike

James and Bacek moved with slow silent precision as they crept through the area around the meeting place. The entire operation could only be guaranteed with the proper application of stealth, swiftness and sure fire aim. In a sleek dull black suit of armor modified to give off the lowest visual signature on both visual and thermal scans the special operations squad leader moved with tender care. Like a surgeon preparing for a very delicate operation James knew that the first few moments would be critical to their entire mission.

The outside of the space port was essentially a 5 meter thick walled square shaped corridor that served as a defensive barrier at times as well as a place to house the main terminal areas that had been closed off years ago after the proper tenants had been forced out. Now the wall turned the spaceport more into an armored fortress so James could see the practicality in holding such a meeting here.

'Domus is smart, but we're a lot smarter and more motivated'.

James didn't like high grade anything in the hands of anyone other than the council themselves. He'd seen what could be done with such weaponry in the hand of some dangerous individuals even before joining Cohort so he'd taken to the mission with an almost personal initiative to get it done. It didn't worry him much; he figured such motivation could only help ensure the job was done to the best level. But Nina had voice that she felt it made his focus narrowed and unwilling to be ready to adapt to changing variables. James had nodded to her worries but he couldn't help feel that he had everything under control.

'Conviction can give you an edge just the same as courage, but I'm not about to go walk blindly into a fight, just want to make sure it's done right' he thought to himself he and Bacek held their position at a pile of refuse not too far from the spaceport. New unscarred weaponry held in their armored hands and relatively unscathed armor gave them the look of just another pair of mercenaries in the area and would help give them a low profile. A citadel attack unit wouldn't last long on Omega and James wanted to give them every chance at success they could get.

"Three from One, we're about to move through the side entrance. Maintain com silence till after the first shot." James said quickly before he heard a small com beep to designate that the other members of the squad understood. As James and Bacek found the large crater in the wall that they had scouted out earlier James held himself set against the exterior of the wall with his assault rifle at the ready. The armored squad leader nodded curtly to his friend and Bacek moved through with calm movements as he slinked on through the gap.

Making sure the safety was off on his rifle James moved in right behind his comrade and dim light of the Omega exterior seemed to vanish as James found himself in a terminal area of the deficient spaceport. Blank terminals sat comfortable in recessed spaces giving the place an almost ghastly mood as the two commandos crept along. The area had no lights to speak of and looked as if everything that could be picked and used for something had been plundered from the place, a testament to what could happen if you didn't win on Omega. Movement down the hall caught James and Bacek's attention and the pair immediately settled back against the wall pressing themselves into the darkness. The two patrolling guards were slopping with their work. The barrel mounted lamps on their weapons could of spelled doom for the entire operation but they moved past the commandos position with little more than a casual back and for the of their heads and weaponry. One time the light from one of the guards held close over James head and as the commando began to ready his rifle for a firefight the light had moved further right and eventually returned back to the hallway.

'If these guys are so lax in their work than either Domus has to settle for the worst mercs he can find or they've never had problems at this base. Both options were good for the operation's success rating but James knew they'd have to be careful. Once the two patrolling men had moved out of visual sight James held up a side to side closed palm gesture to Bacek before moving across the hallway to the wall that separated them from the meeting. Bacek took a moment to rig some motion trackers on the wall they had hidden against to be ready in case trouble came again and then he moved over and joined James.

Their helmet sensors picked up chatter coming from an area to their north east so the two squad mates scouted out their next doorway to pass through. Soon enough a single click on the com from Bacek brought James' attention to the turian where Bacek had located an almost head sized hole in the terminal wall. No doubt a relic from the places earlier battles it had a pristine view of the open area landing zone where the meeting was to be held.

Moving very carefully not to have his action caught by a watchful eye or anything else James crouched and then moved his head forward into and looked out. Discussing business with a human contact and surrounded by at least ten heavily armed and armored guards Domus spoke quickly and routinely checked his time piece before returning to his discussion. In the center of the landing zone a plain looking shuttle of most likely Turian origin waited a bit behind Domus. James figured it had to belong either to the arms dealer or his mystery buyer.

Suddenly a new figure appeared and judging by their angle of entrance they had to have come from the shuttle itself. The massive Krogan immediately sent James back in time, he remembered the hallways of a derelict ship, searching for survivors and then finding only the dead and a shotgun's barrel set into the small of his back. It had been a long time since he and Nina had left the Oracle and joined into the Cohort project but James knew it was the same Krogan from that fateful encounter and James' grip tightened around the handle of his weaponry.

Keeping a visual lock on the massive being glad in the same heavy armor and armed to the teeth just as he had been months before James knew the warrior could be a game changer for the operation. They were prepared for resistance but what if there were more guards in the shuttle. With their only explosives some detpacks they'd have to get up close and personal to make sure the shuttle never made it off and on the other hand the krogan would keep them too busy to ensure that the shuttle never took off. Thinking fast James reviewed the tactical situation for his options but then his nose kind of crinkled and his eyes narrowed behind his helmet's visor. The stance of the krogan seemed a bit peculiar, too easy going for the likes of him. It didn't feel right, not at all. Forgoing com silence as he heard the rush of moment somewhere off to his left he sent orders to the rest of the unit.

"Squad this is One. Initiate Attack Omega. The krogan figured things out somehow, their must have been some hidden sensors we didn't find earlier, could have been in the terminal area. Kill the Krogan and don't let Domus escape, we need him alive." James said as he spun around and opened fire on the two guards whom the squad leader was sure were only the first wave of the ambush.

James' kinetic barriers flashed before him as they took a burst of accelerated rounds but he was already moving rolling off to his left he fired tried to sweep across the guards' legs if only to distract them. Bacek on the other hand moved quickly to flank them from their left side and immediately opened fire with his shotgun. The first shot impacted directly with the man's shields and sent him crashing backwards but his shields were still up.

The standing guard turned to target Bacek but James was already upon him. Slinging his assault rifle onto his back the human produced a black steel blade and rushed forward charging at the guard. Leaping forward James crashed into the man and pinned him down to the ground while holding his mouth shut with his left hand and sweeping across his throat with the knife hand. The cut was swift and precise and as Bacek slammed his shotgun's butt down on the face of the other guard James confirmed his guard was out of commission and as James collected the two grenades from the human guard's belt he heard reports of a massive explosion from the landing zone area.

Keeping his cool James initiated a sensor sweep on his HUD to quickly map out the area. An access door into the landing zone was immediately tagged on his map along with the relative position of the rest of his squad. As planned they had triggered the explosives at their side of the terminal wall and as the dust had settled they had immediately opened fire on the hopefully surprised association of beings in the area. As James made it to the doorway he found Cahleura alright in the middle of assaulting her beleaguered adversaries with biotic attacks while Nina and the others supported her in a Vee formation with their assault and sniper rifles. James spotted the arms dealer lying on the ground not too far from the asari and hoped on all things that Domus was still breathing. They'd risked a lot to get here and that one factor could destroy everything they'd worked for.

Moving along the south west portion of the landing zone James searched for the closest threats to him and the squad and worried that he saw no sign of the krogan. Thoughts in James' mind led him to believe the krogan might have been taken in the early assault but James knew that was wishful thinking, the krogan had been too far from the initial explosion that any wounds would have been minimal and nowhere near what they would need to bring him down. Advancing towards the rear portion of the shuttle near the engine compartment James held his back to the shuttle's hull. Directing Bacek to advance along the right side of the shuttle James planned to move along the engine compartment and catch the enemies directly at their backs. Before he could move however he heard the gentle clink of hard metal and watched in surprised as two grenades clattered to a stop at James' feet. Instincts took over as explosives erupted James was half way into a dive. The explosive force rumbled across him and before he knew it the explosive way slammed against his body.


	35. Leads of Death

**19 Hours 12 Units March 21st 2184**

**Planet Omega**

**Abandoned Spaceport**

James' form crashed along a violent trajectory as the brilliant wave of destruction was unleashed. The former Systems Alliance marine heard the loud scraping of armor against pavement as his kinetic shields failed right before he continued along through a roll and eventually came to a rest a good distance away from the shuttle with his assault rifle clattering to a stop well away from James' reach.

As he looked up James spotted the massive form of the krogan bearing down on him from around the rear of the shuttle. Two cut down and heavily modified shotguns were held ready as he moved along toward the downed Cohort member with grim determination spread out across his scaly reptillian skin. James scrambled up and extended out his pistol while moving for cover. As the pistol unfolded the Cohort squad leader opened fire on krogan but the mass accelerated pellets were easily deflected away by the krogan's superior shielding as he continued along toward James.

Suddenly a new storm of shotgun fire bolstered James' forcing the krogan to abandon his war path and roll back to avoid being cut down. James' helmet receiver picked up a palpable roar from the larger alien and he dug in away from Bacek as the turian moved in with his shotgun ready. James stood up and moved to join his friend as he reacquired his assault rifle.

Unfortunately James' sensors picked up a new group of targets approaching fast and he realized that enemy reinforcements had to be coming to help out their buddies. Opening his com unit while moving along toward the landing ramp of the shuttle he noted where his fellow squad mates had secured Domus.

"Set up incendiary grenades at defensive points and prepare for some close quarters. Joavn get aboard the shuttle and get it ready for a fast lift. " The one time criminal nodded shortly to James and quickly swept aboard and into the shuttle and soon after Bacek and Cahleura hauled the weapons dealer aboard James knew the element of surprise was long gone and they'd have to buckle down to beat back this new wave of interlopers. James pulled a pair of portable barrier generators from his belt and placed them down strategically to still give his team good windows of fire.

The wave of reinforcements arrived soon after the barriers were erected and suddenly James' rifle was set and locked against his shoulder as he opened fire once more. This newest entrée into the battle was undoubtedly some mercenary force that Domus had hired as a backup. Red curved bolts of lightning decorated their shoulder pads and a pair of the symbols were perched mirror to one another on the crowns of the helmeted mercenaries. The Cohort squad leader wondered if the group had any connection to the raid on Fort Pride but he kept himself concentrated on disabling the threat they presented. James kept a steady rhythm of bursts going while Bacek's well trained precision was like that of an ancient hunter as he picked off his opponents. The turian's Haliat Armory Thunder IX delivered fast and vicious bursts directly to the heads of those targets unlucky enough to be caught with low shields. The end result was nothing short of a deadly art as the turian whittled through the advance squad and used either the barriers or the heavily armored shuttle whenever his shields were low.

Nina didn't fair so bad herself as she stood guard next to Tholam making sure to watch the salarian's back as the tech specialist's omni-tool played havoc with the equipment of the mercenaries. After one particular rapid succession of keys and a tap of the input command, the small motors in the armor of one of the advancing mercenaries were locked in place sending the rifleman tumbling forward in a crash as his control was cut; the human Cohort member had to grin at her squad mates ingenuity but she couldn't dwell on it long as more and more targets presented themselves.

Firing the finishing burst at a mercenary sniper James finally heard the shuttle's engines powering up signaling the Cohort's revised extraction plan. Using direct hand signals to the squad scattered around the abandoned spaceport he issued the order to fall in and prepare for their exit. Armored boots clanged up the landing ramp and James and Bacek slowly backed up to cover their squad mates exit. The squad leader swapped quickly to his Hydra VII shotgun and caught one of the mercenaries full on in the stomach as the operatives tried to stop the Cohort squad's retreat but it was too little to late. Preparing another charge just in case James followed Bacek up the ramp and soon enough the gangway lifted up and sealed behind the two almost as the ship lurched suddenly as it began it's ascent.

"Easy there Six, last thing we need is to loose our lunches." James said as he glanced at the bound and gagged weapons dealer and then continued. "Lids stay on, ship might be bugged with cams and recording devices so maintain silence unless it's an emergency." James said before seeing Tholam power up his omni-tool once more and began searching the vessel for such devices; James wasn't taking any chances with their package. As the shuttle headed out and away from the spaceport James made sure the safeties on his gear were set before settling in for the ride back to their actual extraction craft. They'd ditch the shuttle and take anything that might help them figure out what their next destination would be.

About a half hour later the Cohort squad was set in preparation to leave Omega and James stood in a doorway of the modified freighter the squad had used for their infiltration while he watched Cahleura and Arterius questioning Domus. James figured they'd only bring in Bacek if the weapons dealer didn't want to play ball but James hoped that the human might make things a whole lot easier and tell them his connection to the attack so they could all get a move on. So far it didn't seem the case.

"Just tell us why your name was found in a rover used by a crew to massacre those mercs and then maybe we can talk about you getting out of here. If not then I'm sure that some of your contacts would be very interested to hear what you told us while we had our nice chat." Cahleura said coldly while Arterius watched a monitor that kept watch over Domus' vitals, a preparatory measure should they need Bacek.

"You waste your time with such threats. My contacts know that their information is safe when they have the money for the services I provide. And as to your one link to me, I give my name to many people, how does that implicate me any more than any of you?" Domus said in a staunch tone that had decisive Russian tones to it. The human glared toward Arterius before Cahleura continued.

"Because you were in the process of selling amongst other things, modified weaponry whose serial numbers corresponds to those that were stolen from the Fort Pride facility." It was true they had found the weapons stashed in a crate aboard the shuttle but it didn't really fit the build of the meeting that had taken the squad a week of interrogation to uncover. There had to be something else and James knew the answers they sought lied with Domus.

For the moment he left his fellow squad mates to it and headed toward the gang plank to make sure the rest of the loading was going smoothly. Near some crates set to be loaded aboard the freighter Tholam studied the captured weapons hoping to find something else conclusive but the look on the salarian's thin face spelled it out to James.

"It's illogical that we've come all this way for some stolen weapons. These aren't even top of the line grade and their heat sink is speced for 5 round bursts. I can't figure how a mercenary organization could hold onto a structure with weapons outfitted in such a fashion." At those words something clicked in James' mind as to why the weapons were so important that Domus had gone to great lengths to keep the meeting under wraps. It wasn't the rifles it was what was in them and James had an idea he wouldn't like what it was.

Hands kept steady by precise concentration Tholam began to disassemble the rifle he had been looking over. It was a fairly easy process but James got the feeling whatever the weapon was hiding might not exactly be user friendly and so both he and the salarian had donned the heaviest armor they had brought for the mission. His faceplate lowered James watched as Tholam removed the outer casing of the item that fueled the limitless supply of pellets for the miniature mass accelerator that gave the current generation of weapons their lethality. Instead of one of the generic blocks of metal that was normally situated in the assembly there was a much smaller block situated with a decisively menacing looking explosive device.

James held his breath as Tholam carefully removed both items and once the charge from the explosive device was properly removed than the salarian began to investigate the bomb.

"This device is unlike anything I've ever seen being used by most conventional militaries. There are a few components that are foreign to me but I believe that the researchers back on the Citadel might have better luck than I."

"Whatever it is he went to a lot of effort to hide it and offload it. I think some people here on Omega were going to be given the shipment as payment for their work in other areas of this plot but we're still missing solid answers." James said a bit daunted that they seemed to be still skirting around another dead end. Before he continued a voice called out to him from the ship and he realized it belonged to Joavn.

"Sir Nina intercepted a transmission that was left for Domus. I think they figured he wouldn't answer so they left us a nice message." The human said with a grin as James moved told Tholam to get the mysterious device sealed up to prevent it from possibly threatening the squad in any way and followed Joavn to where the team had taken the communication suite that had been precisely removed from the shuttle and loaded onto the freighter so that they could get all possible information from it without having to haul the entire ship.

At her work station Nina was working on her terminal setup as some audio played on a loop. As the voices spoke James recognized an all too familiar turian voice as the speakers.

"Domus I need you to pack up and get to Elysium to meet us there. The demonstration is moving forward due to the increased Citadel activity in the sector and we believe even the Alliance might be close to uncovering our operations here. You must tread carefully my friend but do not let your faith falter. With this demonstration we shall deal a staggering blow to not only the Alliance but we shall also strengthen the resolve of those who have been hesitant to join us. Once they see the test they'll realize that we have spoken the truth and they shall flock to our banner." Hearing Troaviel's voice left James feeling a bit lost for words. He hadn't considered that his former fellow squad leader would be part of this newest threat but he'd be lying if he said he didn't look forward to seeing the turian again. The message didn't given them an exact route but it was at least a solid lead that might just bring them face to face with a betrayer and all the closer to unraveling this newest mystery that was posed to strike at the galaxy.


	36. Fields on Elysium

**Special Thanks to Nitwhit for helping me out with his chapter and dealing with my insanity as a whole.**

Eld Gelorte watched from the shadows as the shuttle took off into the night. As the area calmed down the human operative stepped out calmly onto the landing zone before another group of armored mercenaries began gathering their gear and seeing to their wounded. Moving from body to body Eld looked for any survivors of the area. He didn't have any care for the well being or lives of any of the Red Guard mercenaries but the group was used in too many of the organization's galaxy spanning operations to anger the higher ups and as easy as it would have been to erase all traces of using the merc squad during the attack it might add more difficulty in securing more muscle for when the organization needed it. Besides him marching with slow lumbering steps the krogan kept step behind him.

Passing over a particularly injured mercenary Eld looked up towards the Omega Sky with a neutral uncompromising gaze. "Seems Mr. Fields isn't the helpless Alliance thug you made him out to be Vulern." Eld said in his slick professional tone before signaling another mercenary that they'd found a survivor.

"His continued existence is only a matter of you wanting him to escape Gelorte. If you were paying me to kill him, I would have just killed him." The krogan snarled cruelly as he fought the urge to teach the insolent human to show some respect.

"I suppose. But we still have much to do before they arrive at Elysium." Eld turned swiftly to a salarian wearing the same armor as the mercenaries around them and continued. "Is everything working as it should be?" Eld asked inquisitively while keeping his hand ready to reach his pistol if the salarian's plan had failed him and his masters.

"Of course, that pitiful excuse for a tech specialist might have managed to disable part of the devices but without a true understanding of their technological designs it will be too late before they realize what they're actually carrying." The salarian Jiyu said in a fast rapid response as he checked a bit of data on his Omni-tool. Though he was a member of the Red Guard the salarian was also one of the organizations most regarded agents in the mercenary outfit and so he had been brought on once it was realized that his special capabilities and expertise would be required. Using technology created from reverse engineering of some of the tech the organization had 'acquired' the salarian had helped create the tools that would lead to the unraveling of the Cohort.

Eld maintained his gaze on the space settled above him and allowed a deviously evil grin to spread across his features. He rarely let things personal because he knew just the kind of effects it could end up having on a person but the Cohort's interference in a number of the organization's operations had begun cause Eld no short amount of agitation. Once again everything was on track and in a short amount of time he felt firmly confident that the Cohort unit would be dealt with in the most vicious fashion.

* * *

With their FTL drives already engaged and the ship zooming along its way toward their goal the Cohort squad occasionally studied their chronos as prepared their weapons and gear for the coming mission. Arteries worked on patching up a few chinks in his armored suit caused by the armed retreat on Omega while Cahleura appeared to be meditating over the events as they had unfolded for the squad. James knew that constant activity was sometimes the best way to keep your mind from wandering about what could happen on a mission, what mistakes that might keep you from doing your job and what setbacks you might experience. Just like during their time on Omega they were operating with little backup and even less tactical understanding of the situation and the squad leader didn't need to be a combat veteran to know it could keep you at a constant state of unease. He begrudgingly knew however that they had little choice in the matter.

Besides the need in him to bring Troaviel to justice he knew that any sort of demonstration that the turian and his organization would be involved with could have the capacity for nothing short of outright decimation to many innocent civilians and he wasn't about to let it happen if he and the squad could stop it.

Elysium was one of the largest Alliance colonies and any sort of attack or incursion against it would not only hurt the Alliance but the trade that was supported in the system by other council species as well; making their success there all the more pertinent. Before they'd made the jump James had instructed Nina to send a coded transmission to the General to inform them of the team's advances in the investigation and bring him up to speed on their plan. What little details they had were transferred via com buoy over the extranet along the Cohort's priority channel and received aboard the _Phalanx. _After reviewing her report the general had his navigators set course for Elysium as soon as they were able and reported back to Nina that they would do all that they could to reinforce the squad but Nina knew then that the General and other Cohort squads were already several hours behind them and if they were unlucky it would be too late. As she'd reported the information back to James he'd concluded that the squad would have to be enough.

Now Nina sat around with the others and made sure that the heat sink on her pistol would activate properly when it needed to. During their escape from Omega she'd been forced to switch to the Karpov III Pistol after her assault rifle caught the brunt of mass accelerated pellets from one of the attacking mercenaries. The backup weapon had managed to halt the attacking mercenary but the blasted thing had heated up at an alarming rate and Nina almost got caught by another pair of mercenaries with no weapon as she'd waited for the pistol to cool down. Only the timely intervention Cahleura and her biotics had saved the human during the firefight and Nina knew the next time she might not be so lucky.

Nina looked for a moment towards James as he reviewed the information on a data slate that Bacek had handed him after finishing off his last interrogation session with Domus. From what she'd gathered the arms dealer clung to life barely after the repeated quick and painful sessions with Bacek and had awarded the turian's effort with continued silence.

The former Alliance marine pushed aside the thoughts of what Bacek might be planning to do to the human next and had to remind herself that her duty was to help safeguard the life of the citizens of Citadel space and if she couldn't deal with the harsh reality of what that entailed at times than she had chosen the wrong career. Nina steeled herself against her doubt and realized now more than ever James needed her and the others to be strong resolute if they were to come through for those on Elysium.

James looked up for a moment and caught Nina glancing his way while she worked on her pistol. James gave her a reassuring nod as he caught the subtle yet existent worry on her face before returning his attention to the information Bacek had provided him with.

Domus had given up no information about a possible plot on Elysium but he had dropped a few phrases about some safe house in the Hades Gamma Cluster. When pushed about the items hidden within the rifles the human had shouted with all his waning strength that he knew nothing about the concealed articles and that he'd simply been instructed to sell them to the buyer at the spaceport. James internally cursed that the Cohort's attack had unfortunately caused the buyer; a salarian pirate to experience a face to face meeting with a shotgun burst from Tholam but he couldn't dwell on that now. They had to move forward with what they had and deal with the other ramifications once they found out what Troaviel was planning for the human world.

The freighter emerged from its FTL jump and began a slow a calculated trip to the outer watch perimeter of Elysium's traffic zone. James and Tholam sat at the pilot and copilot station respectively as they guided the ship in towards their newest battlefield. Once they entered the perimeter a human voice came alive from the communications unit.

"Unidentified ship this is Elysium Flight Control. Please identify and report your purpose here."

"This is Specialist Fields aboard the _Atinum. _I have urgent business on Elysium and I need to speak to the highest ranking Alliance officer right now Control." James said in a curt and orderly fashion. After a bit of a pause the control officer replied.

"_Atinum _I'm not seeing you as a registered SA starship so I can't just link you onto a military frequency it'd have to be an emergency."

"Control, tell whoever's in command there that this is a JTOP Unit and that there is going to be a massive attack on a bunch of innocent civilians if I don't get some damn cooperation right now." James almost shouted as he began to loose his patience with the control officer.

After initial delay the controlled patched him onto an Alliance frequency and a grizzled hardy voice answered back.

"This is General Van Astor of the Systems Alliance, currently in command of the SA forces operating on Elysium. This channel is restricted for military emergencies son so this better be good." The authority in the man's voice was direct and astute as James considered how he was going to convince the man.

"Sir this is Specialist James Fields of the Citadel JTOP Unit Cohort. We've come here right from a mission directly off Omega with all speed. General we have good reason to believe that there is going to be a terrorist strike on a civilian target within the next few days. The organization that is responsible is known to have highly high grade and highly volatile weaponry at their disposal and they are not afraid to use it. I will need your help to locate the targets as quickly as possible and neutralize them." Looking up and to his right James watched as Tholam discharged their drive cores before continuing along its path. The freighter continued downward towards the planetary surface before James heard a reply.

"That's a tall order Fields. We're already on task to support a number of battle groups operating out of the sector and most of our marine forces have been galvanized over the past months. I'll ask around amongst my intelligence assets and see if they've heard anything peculiar. I'll contact the planetary security forces as well and see about helping your investigation out."

"Appreciated General, keep me informed." James said and transmitted the squad's communication codes before closing the link. The former Alliance marine just hoped that what help the general could provide might help the squad accomplish there mission. Soon enough the ship landed in the main spaceport and Tholam began shutting down the systems of the freighter as James alerted the squad to prepare their gear and be ready to get a move on.

* * *

Moving back into the main space of the ship James found the squad gathering up their gear and supplies. Some affixed extra armor plates to their suits while others made sure their kinetic barriers. James knew that given their experience with the organization being ready for anything was the best possible defense. Moving to one of the weapons lockers James calmly grabbed his pistol, shotgun and rifle and then anchored them efficiently to his back and his sides. As his gear clicked into place he looked around to the various squad members and Tholam finished up setting the ship into standby mode before regrouping with them. Standing at the head of the unshapely circle formed by the squad James breathed a calm breath and spoke to his friends and allies.

"Everyone needs to stay focused out here, and keep your mind on the enemies that lay ahead. Troaviel was one of us so he's going to be ready for us and each chance he gets to hit us hard he's going to take; so we need to be faster stronger and do whatever necessary to keep him off balance. This is going to get ugly long before it gets any better, so you need to look out for each other and keep yourself ready for everything. Remember that we are a unit of the best, we were chosen from amongst thousands to be the vanguard against any and all threats against the civilized galaxy and it is our duty to combat them no matter what the odds, no matter what the cost. If it means that today we meet our end they damn well better be feeling it tomorrow. Let's get to it." He wasn't normally one for speeches but James knew that everyone had their limits and the squad had been going full tilt ever since getting reactivated. Even they had their limits and he knew sometimes you needed to make sure to do everything you could to maintain morale.

Soon after the Cohort squad descended down the ship's landing ramp right as it lowered. Immediately the calm afternoon light of Elysium appeared around them as James took point in bringing the heavily armed and heavily armored team toward the nearest exit. Around them departing and embarking passengers gawked while technicians and service crews stopped mid task to watch as the special ops group made their way across the spaceport's well weathered floor. James kept himself alert for any threats but none presented themselves, at least not yet. Up ahead he saw an exit and the human quickened his pace a bit, every second wasted was another that their enemies were possibility getting closer to accomplishing their task. Over his ear piece he suddenly heard General's Astor's determined voice once more.

"You there Fields?"

"Just landed, what have you got General." James said as he passed through the exit under the watchful eyes of a pair of Systems Alliance marines who stood guard near the section of the spaceport.

"It's not much but it's the best I could get on such short notice. I've got reports here from the local security force that a large number of the Red Guard mercenary unit arrived here about a day ago but never came to them or any SA base looking for jobs or work assignments. Security forces thought it was fishy and investigated for any trouble but didn't find anything solid enough to get the go ahead for arrests. I don't know if these are the guys you're looking for but as my memory serves me the group's never really been seen this far out. People here are telling me they've known to do a few jobs on Omega as the rumors go." James thought it was too much of coincidence not to be the group who had fired upon him and the others hours ago he immediately began searching for an air cab as his steps quickened yet again.

"General I need the address of any and all buildings that they've been using and make it quick."

"Already on it son, they rented space in the industrial district. A bit removed from most civies but if they're your targets its prime real estate for a prep zone. Don't worry about the address I've got two marine fireteams en route to you, they should be pulling up now." The general said before James spotted two treaded assault carriers sporting SA colors speeding their way over to the spaceport with their top mounted sirens blaring. "Sgt Vut and his men will take you the rest of the way. Be careful out there Fields and watch out for my marines."

"Will do, thank you general." James said quickly as their new rides pulled up. The canopy opened quickly revealing a tanned skinned man with an angular narrow face wearing the armor of a SA marine.

"You Fields?" The SA sergeant said before James nodded curtly. The man quickly stepped out as the storage compartments on the carriers opened up along with the rear access doors. Holding out his hand quickly to James he introduced himself "Sgt. Dantu Vut of the 42nd Division. General Astor said you might need some help in the industrial district sir." He said as James shook his outstretched hand and then loaded up the squad and their gear into the armored vehicles.

"Sounds like a plan Sgt." James said as the sergeant hopped back into his vehicle. James followed suit and exactly 10 minutes after arriving at Elysium the Cohort squad leader shut the canopy door behind him and the two vehicles sped off heading away from the spaceport and out towards their targets.


End file.
